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.
Springer is a town in Colfax County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,285 at the 2000 census. It was the Colfax County county seat from 1882—1897. Springer was part of the Lucien B. Maxwell land grant. It is near the Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail. There was a range war in Springer in 1881, when Maxwell sold his land grant to a group of investors. The former Colfax County Courthouse in Springer is now a visitor center and museum. It was built for $9,800 in the early 1880s. It has had multiple uses over the years, including the site of the Raton Reform School for Boys (1910–1917). It has also been a library, the Springer town hall, and a jail. Outside the courthouse museum is a tall monument to the Ten Commandments. There is also a marker honoring Lance Corporal Chad Robert Hildebrandt (October 12, 1983—October 17, 2005), the first casualty in the Iraq War from Springer.