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.
White Plains is an unincorporated community located in Charles County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America, just south of Waldorf, Maryland. It is located at latitude 38°35'25" North; longitude 76°56'26" West. The United States Postal Service has assigned White Plains the ZIP Code 20695. While the commercial portion of White Plains is along U.S. Highway 301, the largest concentration of residences with the White Plains mailing address is actually six to seven miles to the West in developments off of Billingsley Road (see article on Bryans Road, Maryland). The area is growing with the population sprawl from the adjacent sizable city of Waldorf-St. Charles, and has opened new office parks, and in 2009 a scenic new rail trail. The Charles County Department of Health is headquartered in White Plains; a public golf course is also there. Plans to complete a new east-west connector road in the area are mired in controversy due to its environmental impact.