Civil vs. Criminal Cases

When a person gets hurt in any kind of accident the first question is, will the perpetrator be punished? This is a complicated question that requires us to understand the different between a civil and a criminal case.

Civil Suits

“Civil” comes from the root “civilian”, meaning being between two regular people of a country and caused by people just being people. In this way one can sense already that a civil suit is usually much less serious, and usually dealing with an accidental charge. Civil suits do not bring about a punishment to the person who was negligent. In fact, in most cases the simple “guilty” will only result in small damages, or punitive damages.

Punitive damages are the punishment of giving the injured person an amount of money equal to the damage that was caused to them. They can use this money for hospital bills, live off it if they can’t work, or a buy a new car now that there old one is damaged. Insurance companies are often involved in civil cases.

Criminal Suits

Criminal cases deal with much more serious cases usually when one person meant harm on another person. They can be charged with a misdemeanor or felonies, depending on the severity of the crime. Punishments can range anywhere from six months jail time to the death penalty.

Talk to a Rhinelander Personal Injury Lawyer

If you or a loved one has been involved in personal injury suit, needs legal advice or representation, please contact the Rhinelander personal injury lawyer of Habush, Habush, & Rottier, S.C. by calling 800-242-2874 today for more information.