Points of contact

Nevertheless there are many points of contact between criminal and civil law. In most countries if the loser of a civil case refuses to comply with the order made against him — for example, to pay money to the winner of the action — the procedures for forcing him to comply may result in a criminal prosecution. Disobeying any court may constitute criminal conduct, and the disobedient loser of a civil action may find he or she not only has to pay the damages originally ordered by the court, but a criminal penalty as well.

Although the guilty defendant in a criminal case will not automatically be found liable in a civil action about the same matter, his chances of avoiding civil liability are not good. This is because the standard of proof in the civil case is lower than it was in the criminal case. The plaintiff will therefore make sure any information about a relevant criminal case is passed to the civil court.

It is also possible in English law to bring a civil action against the police. Sometimes this is done by someone who was mistreated when questioned by the police about a criminal case.

Match the words and word combinations from the text with their Russian equivalents:

1. to administer property	a) иметь основания
2. legal remedy 3. to pay a fine	b) судебное разбирательство, процесс; суд
4. to pursue a claim	c) признать виновным/невиновным
5. to have a reason	d) средство судебной защиты
6. to bring/start a criminal/civil action	e) не повиноваться решению суда
7. a trial	f) распоряжаться собственностью
8. to find guilty / innocent	g) избегать ответственности
9. to prove one's case	h) платить штраф
10. to disobey court 11. to avoid liability	i) завести уголовное/гражданское дело
12. to be mistreated	j) подвергаться незаконному обращению
	k)предъявлять иск
	l)доказать правоту, выиграть дело

Look through the text once again and decide if the following statements are true or false. Justify your choice.

1. There is not any distinction between civil law and public law.

2.The victim of the crime pursues his claim for compensation in a civil, not a criminal, action.

3. The standards of proof are equal in a criminal action and in a civil one.

4. Criminal and civil procedure are the same.

5. The English Crown Court deals exclusively with either criminal or civil matters.

6. The party bringing a criminal action is called the prosecution, but the party bringing a civil action is the plaintiff.

7. Evidence from a criminal trial is always admissible as evidence in a civil action about the same matter.

8. The amount of money, or damages which the defendant should pay to the plaintiff is not the main argument in a civil court.

9. Disobeying any court may constitute criminal conduct.

10. The guilty defendant in a criminal case will automatically be found liable in a civil action about the same matter.

Here is some more information about civil and criminal law.

TEXT 2

Law is classified as civil or criminal depending on the subject matter of the dispute and the legal consequences which result from the dispute.