Civil law refers to a legal system that regulates the non-criminal rights and duties of individuals and entities, such as corporations. It is based on concepts, categories, and rules derived from Roman law, with some influence of canon law, and is found on all continents, covering about 60% of the world. Civil law is often paired with the inquisitorial system, but the terms are not synonymous). Some common areas of civil law include family law, contracts, torts, and trusts.

In its technical, narrow sense, civil law describes the law that pertains to persons, things, and relationships that develop among them, excluding not only criminal law but also commercial law, labor law, etc. . Civil law systems are primarily legislative systems, yet they leave room for the judiciary to adjust rules to social change and new needs, by way of interpretation and creative jurisprudence.

Some salient features of civil law include clear expression of rights and duties, simplicity and accessibility to the citizen, advance disclosure of rules, and richly developed and to some extent transnational academic doctrine inspiring the legislature. Civil law countries typically are characterized by their emphasis on the codified law only with judges playing the main role of finding the facts and applying the law in courts).

In contrast to criminal law, which deals with behavior that is or can be construed as an offense against the public, society, or the state, civil law deals with behavior that constitutes an injury to an individual or other private party, such as a corporation. Civil court cases can be about money and debts, property, housing, personal injury, contracts, inheritance, and family law. Civil court judges can order individuals to pay money or a fine, or make decisions about their family or property, but they cannot send them to jail.