CIVIL LAW COMMON LAW

150 nations with predominantly civil
law systems
codified legislation prevails but these
distinctions are not as obvious as they
appear
a written Constitution based on specific
codes (e.g., civil code, codes covering
corporate law, administrative law, tax
law, and constitutional law) enshrining
basic rights and duties; administrative
law, on the other hand, is usually less
codified, and administrative court
judges behave more like common law
judges.
Approach of the legal
process
80 countries with common law systems
case law in the form of published
court opinions is of primary
significance
The laws that govern a case are
founded on both legal precedents
established by judges and statutory
laws established by legislators. In an
adversarial system, the judge acts as a
neutral referee between competing
parties in a dispute. The facts may be
determined by a jury but the law will
be applied by a judge.
Approach of the legal
process

The basic concepts and norms of civil the law has been primarily formed
law are written in codes and legislation through court decisions with little
which are applied by the courts. regard for a conceptual structure
Role of a legislator Role of a legislator

Civil law is founded on the idea of the courts are tasked with establishing
separation of powers, which states that the law
the job of the legislature is to legislate,
while the role of the courts is to
implement the law.
Lawyer’s approach to a Lawyer’s approach to a
case case

Civil law is founded on codes that
include logically linked concepts and
regulations, beginning with
fundamental principles and progressing
to particular laws. A civil lawyer often
begins with a legal standard found in
legislation and deduces conclusions
about the particular situation.
A lawyer in common law, on the other
hand, begins with the actual case and
compares it to the same or comparable
legal concerns that have been dealt
with by courts in previously decided
cases and the binding legal rule is
derived by induction from these
relevant precedents.

attorneys in civil law nations are seen lawyers in common law countries are
to be more intellectual thought to be more practical
The binding force of The binding force of
precedents precedents
the courts’ main task is to decide the courts are supposed not only to
specific cases by applying and decide disputes between specific
interpreting legal norms. parties but also to provide guidance on
how similar disputes should be
resolved in the future
Binding effect of a contract Binding effect of a contract

A contract, on the other hand, cannot common law does not accept contracts
exist under civil law without a valid in the interest of a third-party
cause (causa). beneficiary.