Criminal and Civil Law
Criminal law deals with criminal offences and their punishment. The burden of proof in a criminal case it to demonstrate that guilt has been proven 'beyond reasonable doubt'. Scottish Law is unique in having three possible verdicts; guilty, 'not guilty' and 'not proven'.
Civil law deals with disputes between individuals or individuals and companies and their rights and duties to each other. Established rights and duties are based on 'Torts' (legal wrongs. In Scotland 'Delict', the law of reparation is used rather than 'Tort'. Either defendant or plaintiff may be found to be wrong and be liable for damages (compensation is paid). The outcome of civil law suites is decided on the balance of probabilities that the act or omission alleged occurred.
Decisions made in legal actions are based decisions made in previous cases (Doctrine of precedent). Precedent is used to ensure consistency in decisions made in different courts. It does have disadvantages as not all cases are exactly the same and outcomes can be uncertain. The principles of previous legal cases will apply but the circumstances of the case may influence the outcome. Previous cases usually involve medical staff but the principles apply to all healthcare professionals and are particularly relevant to advanced nurse practitioners. Examples of previous cases are used in the following web pages to highlight likely outcomes in different scenarios.
Key information on how the judicial system works in the 4 UK countries
The structure of the court system in England and Wales
The structure of the Scottish court system and court opinions
Other resources are available at:
