What's the difference between common law and civil law?

[sonato]

I wonder most of all if this is something US specific or if it is applicable in Europe and other parts of the world?

next to the above question I was wondering what of these apply for offshore companies and tax matters. Say I live in country A do business in offshore jurisdiction B and tax man from country A refuse to accept the tax report for the offshore entity, is that common law or civil law?

 

[clemens]

Depends on what you are into, is it tax evasion It is common law is it because your company has made any harm to a person it may be civil law.

Just out of my head not sure if it is 100% correct.

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

Heard of this fascinating new thing called Google?

Civil law = the law is (mostly) written in the books
Common law = the law is (mostly) defined by the courts (case law)

Anglo-Saxon countries usually follow common law, other countries follow civil law.
So it depends on the country. In a country with civil law, it’s a bit easier to understand the rules because you can just read the laws yourself. In a country with case law, you’d need to know similar cases and the courts’ decisions.

 

[aquarius]

Being born in a civil law country and having worked in both civil as well as common law countries I can tell you civil law is more precise. Furthermore it is my experience that people familiar with common law find civil law restrictive whereas people familiar with civil law find common law vague.

 

[sonato]

That make good sense, does somone know if the UK is civil law?

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

I think @Admin should close/delete this thread. This forum is not Google.

 

[JohnLocke]

I think @Admin should close/delete this thread. This forum is not Google.

it is OK - if someone has a problem to see the difference or Google it then why not

 

[Spinat]

one may ask oneself the question which of these two is most advantageous if one does business in the country, civil or common law! That would make sense.

 

[aquarius]

That make good sense, does somone know if the UK is civil law?

common

one may ask oneself the question which of these two is most advantageous if one does business in the country, civil or common law! That would make sense.

One lawyer ever summarised it as follows:

Under civil law you write in an agreement what you want to agree and you are done.
Under common law you have to write what you agree and also what is not covered/not included/not agreed.

In summary: civil law agreements tend to be short and simple documents whereas common law agreements are leafy and likely more profitable for lawyers

 

[khinkali]

common

UK legal traditions are common law, but now there is growing civil law which causes a lot of upset. Statutes and regulations, sprinkled around like confetti form on high, quite distant from the lives of reasonable people trying to do business with each other.

It should be noted that financial centres from East Asia to the Americas, from the Arabian Peninsula to central Asia and even in mainland Europe (rumours of Paris, no less!), seek to provide for dispute resolution based on the English Common Law.

Common Law courts are the future; a major point of advertising for emerging financial centres.

 

[sonato]

Common Law courts are the future; a major point of advertising for emerging financial centres.

That make good sense but why that, you mean that such financial centres can benefit from Common law courts right?

 

[khinkali]

@sonato the reason for new courts choosing the common law tradition is partly to provide a sense of security to businesses who might locate there.

The English common law tradition evolves slowly; you don't tend to get a 180 degree change in direction just because of some whim of current politicians (or in some cases, even civil servants). This political independence is reassuring and in some cases (e.g. Astana, Dubai) there are judges from common law jurisdictions (e.g. England, Scotland, Australia, Malaysia), interpreting a large body of case law going back centuries.

It might seem counter intuitive, but this can also make a common law court more reactive; a judge can draw conclusions from the facts of a case and similar cases in the past, where there is no specific written law yet to guide the decision. This can be of benefit in cases involving technology or new forms of finance.

English common law tradition has a high level of respect for Party Autonomy and Freedom of Contract. We can agree our terms and expect the court to respect them. Some people prefer civil law approach, where every part of our interactions (and perhaps, our lives) should be defined and redefined by politicians writing laws and civil servants issuing regulations. It's partly a matter of personal taste.

 

[sonato]

thank you so much for making it perfectly clear for me what this is about, it make good sense to how you explained it. Again big thanks I owe you a beer