civil action

civil lawsuit, lawsuit which is brought by a citizen (as opposed to a criminal suit which is brought by the government)

"Civil action" redirects here. For the film starring John Travolta of the same name, see A Civil Action.In American law, a lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court in which the party commencing the action, the plaintiff, seeks a legal remedy. One or more defendants are required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint. If the plaintiff is successful, judgment will be given in the plaintiff's favor, and a range of court orders may be issued to enforce a right, award damages, or impose an injunction to prevent an act or compel an act. A declaratory judgment may be issued to prevent future legal disputes.
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Noun
1. legal action to protect a private civil right or to compel a civil remedy (as distinguished from criminal prosecution)
(hypernym) legal action, action, action at law

The generic term used to describe court proceedings that are not criminal in nature. This includes lawsuits by private parties as well as those involving governments. Except in cases concerning civil contempt (actually a quasi-criminal matter) there is seldom a possibility of incarceration to the losing party.

In most jurisdictions actions are divided only into two kinds, namely, criminal and civil. A criminal action is prosecuted by the state as a party, against a person charged with a public offence, for the punishment thereof. Every other action is a civil action. In common parlance, however, writs of mandamus, certiorari, habeas corpus, etc., are not comprised by the expression.
   

This entry contains material from Bouvier's Legal Dictionary, a work published in the 1850's.

PROCESSO CIVILE