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 Vernon is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Nearby CDPs are Fort Belvoir (west) and Fort Hunt, Virginia (north), The population was 28,582 at the 2000 census. While "Mount Vernon" -- drawn from the Mount Vernon plantation, the home of George Washington located south of Alexandria -- is often used locally to refer to the entire unincorporated area between Old Town Alexandria and Fort Belvoir, Mount Vernon as defined by the Census Bureau encompasses only the part of it coextensive with Alexandria ZIP code 22309, bounded by the Potomac River to the south, Fort Belvoir to the west, Huntley Meadows Park to the north, and Little Hunting Creek to the east.