civil law

noun

often capitalized C&L

1

: Roman law especially as set forth in the Justinian code

2

: the body of private law developed from Roman law and used in Louisiana and in many countries outside the English-speaking world

3

: the law established by a nation or state for its own jurisdiction

4

: the law of civil or private rights

Examples of civil law in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Under Israeli civil law, by comparison, a person must be brought before a judge within 24 hours after arrest; in extraordinary circumstances, that time period can be extended to 96 hours. —Lynzy Billing, The Dial, 6 May 2025

The corpus of criminal and civil law was viewed as rightfully created and administered by states. —Mohammed Ayoob, Foreign Affairs, 3 Apr. 2016

Their suit alleges multiple violations of the law by Weiss and the other parties, including violations of Title IX protections, violations of their civil rights and violation of civil laws such as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. —Doha Madani, NBC news, 24 Mar. 2025

The phrase, attributed to the French military leader who created the Napoleonic Code of civil law in 1804 before declaring himself emperor, drew immediate criticism from Democrats. —Doina Chiacu, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1500, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for civil law

• allantois
• baccarat
• chickasaw
• mackinaw
• overawe
• oversaw
• quebecois
• yojana
• aa
• aha
• bashaw
• bradshaw

Legal Definition

civil law

noun

often capitalized C&L

1

: Roman law especially as set forth in the Code of Justinian

2

: the body of law developed from Roman law and used in Louisiana, in continental Europe, and in many other countries outside of the English-speaking world including especially those that were colonized by countries of continental Europe compare common law

Note: Although Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. whose law is based entirely on civil law, remnants of civil law remain in other states (as Texas and California) in which countries of continental Europe had a strong influence.

3

: the law established by a nation or state for its own jurisdiction

4

: the law that applies to private rights especially as opposed to the law that applies to criminal matters compare criminal law