Civil law, as opposed to criminal law, is the branch of law dealing with disputes between individuals and/or organizations, in which compensation may be awarded to the victim. For instance, if a car crash victim claims damages against the driver for loss or injury sustained in an accident, this will be a civil law case. Civil law courts provide a forum for deciding disputes involving torts (such as accidents, negligence, and libel), contract disputes, the probate of wills, trusts, property disputes, administrative law, commercial law, and any other private matters that involve private parties or organizations including government departments. The objectives of civil law are different from other types of law. In civil law there is the attempt to right a wrong, honor an agreement, or settle a dispute. If there is a victim, they get compensation, and the person who is the cause of the wrong pays, this being a civilized form of, or legal alternative to, revenge.
Mount Olive, also spelled Mt. Olive is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Jefferson County, Alabama in the suburbs of Birmingham, Alabama. As of the 2000 census, the population of the community is 3,957. Mount Olive is bordered on the south and the east by the town of Gardendale, and in fact, some areas that had previously been in Mount Olive have been annexed into Gardendale over the years. Running along part of the border between Mt. Olive and Gardendale is the major expressway, Interstate 65. Eventually, part of Birmingham's Northern Beltline will cut through northwestern sections of Mt. Olive. Mt. Olive has its own elementary school and was formerly the home of a junior high school. Beyond elementary school, most of its students go on to Bragg Middle School and eventually Gardendale High School. A new $50-million Gardendale High School is expected to be completed within a year or two. Mount Olive is also the birthplace of iconic country music legend Hank Williams, which is in Butler County, not the town referenced in this article.