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.
Rensselaer is a city in Rensselaer County, New York, U.S. , and is located on the Hudson River directly opposite Albany. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 7,761; in 1920, it was 10,832. The name is from Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original landowner of the region in New Netherland. Rensselaer is on the west border of the county. Earliest settlement occurred as early as 1628. The city has a rich industrial history stretching back to the 1800s, when it became a major railroad hub, a distinction which it maintains as the location of the 14th busiest Amtrak station. It was one of the earliest locations of the dye industry in the United States, and the first American location for the production of Aspirin.