2 court cases for 1 criminal act: It is possible

Many people think that you can only face one court case for a specific event. While this might seem like it is the case, it isn’t. There are some crimes that can lead to more than one court case. These include things like drunk driving cases, charges stemming from fights and many violent crimes. In any case that involves a person getting injured, there is a chance that you will face a criminal case and a civil case.

There are some significant differences between these two cases. One of the most important to many people is that you can face time in jail or prison for most criminal charges, but you won’t face this possibility if there is a civil lawsuit launched against you.

The goal of a civil case is to determine if the complainant is entitled to compensation based on the circumstances of the incident. The goal of a criminal case is to determine if a person should face a punishment in relation to a crime they allegedly committed.

It is important to note that these two types of legal cases are completely separate. You can be found guilty in a criminal court but found not liable in a civil court. The opposite is also true.

The old OJ Simpson verdicts from the 1990s is a good example of this. Simpson was found not guilty in the criminal court in 1995 for the murder of two individuals. He was found liable in civil court in 1997 in a case related to those murders.

If you are facing legal proceedings in both courts, you need to work on both of them. This can be challenging but it is necessary in these cases.