The body of law can be organized in countless ways. Each method of organization provides a way of distinguishing one area of law from another. First, all law can be defined as substantive or procedural. In addition, law can be divided into criminal and civil law (of which contract law and tort laws are types).

Civil law governs the issues that arise between parties over private rights. Thus, a citizen who sues another for acquisition of a disputed property has grounds for a civil case. An example of a civil case is an individual suing the government for infringement of his fundamental rights. Still another example is a suit by one citizen against another for property damage or physical injury caused by an automobile accident. A civil case is brought by the injured party for damage to his or her personal rights, person, or property. The injured party seeks some sort of compensation (usually monetary) for the injury or damage to the person or property.

A criminal case is a suit that is brought by the government for violation or injury to public rights. Even though a crime may be perpetrated against a single victim, the public as a whole takes up the cause of the affected individual. An individual who violates the provision of law against anyone violates the rights of the public as a whole. The government enforces the rights of the public through prosecution based on criminal law, which ranges from petty offences to committal of murder. Criminal law includes all laws designed by the legislature to maintain order and safety in our society. It carries a penalty of a fine or imprisonment. A court may also order restitution (compensation) to the victim. With the exception of an order of restitution, generally any claim for damages by a victim who may have been injured by a crime must be resolved in a civil suit against the alleged criminal brought by the injured party.

In a civil case, the penalties are quite different. For example, there is no imprisonment. Secondly, any judgment that awards money is payable to the individual whose rights were invaded and injured. The award of money should be sufficient to compensate the injured party for the reasonable cost of the injuries, thus the term compensatory damages. Additionally, in cases where money cannot adequately compensate but some action could, the guilty party may be ordered to act or refrain from acting in a certain way. This is called injunctive relief and, more particularly, specific performance. This type of relief is quite limited. Some jurisdictions also permit the recovery of punitive damages (also Compensatory Damages- An award of money payable to the injured party for the reasonable cost of the injuries. known as exemplary damages), which are additional monies that the defendant is ordered to pay as a form of punishment. The reasoning behind punitive damages is that some actions are so grossly improper that the defendant should be punished in a way that will serve as an example to others who might contemplate the same wrongful conduct.

In civil cases, procedural law takes effect when citizens bring a dispute to the legal system. In criminal law, the law enforcement agencies and prosecutors who are part of the legal system initiate a claim against a citizen. Therefore, criminal procedural law begins at the time the law enforcement personnel anticipate that they will bring a dispute into the legal system.

This is the law that creates and resolves the issue between the parties. Legal standards that guide conduct and that are applied to determine whether or not conduct was legally appropriate.

Substantive law creates, defines, and regulates rights, as opposed to adjective, procedural, or remedial law, which provides a method of enforcing rights. It is exactly what its name implies, the body, essence, and substance that guide the conduct of citizens. It encompasses principles of right and wrong as well as the principle that wrong will result in penalty. It includes the rights and duties of citizens, and it provides the basis to resolve issues involving those rights. Every citizen has the right to live and enjoy his or her own property free from intrusion by other citizens. All members of a populous society are obligated to respect and to not interfere with the rights of others. Substantive law establishes the extent of this right and obligation to which all persons are subjects. When a person engages in conduct that has an adverse effect on another individual, an injury may occur. An innocent injured party who wants to be compensated for the damage caused by the injury may request assistance from the legal system on the basis that the injuring party acted wrongfully. Such wrongful conduct gives rise to the dispute between the two parties. The court will examine the situation to determine whether the conduct of the party alleged to be at fault was indeed wrongful by society's standards. If it was, the party will be judged and will be penalized. If it was not, the party will be judged innocent. In either situation, the court resolves the issue based on what society has determined to be right and wrong conduct between individuals and entities

Procedural law prescribes a method of enforcing rights or of obtaining redress for the invasion of rights. The basic function of civil procedural law is to facilitate the movement of a lawsuit through the legal system. Procedural laws are created to ensure that each party will be afforded fair and impartial treatment. Further, procedural law has its goal that judges and juries will receive only evidence that will allow them to make a fair and impartial decision. Civil procedure can be likened to a large piece of machinery that assembles a product. It does not feel or possess opinions. The function of procedural law is to assemble all of the pieces into a complete product. The parties to the suit provide the pieces to the product at appropriate times and in the appropriate manner. The completed product delivered from the machine is the decision that resolves the dispute. This decision is based on the pieces of information (substantive law and facts of the case) that have been fed into the machine and assembled. The principles of law that were applied in a case to determine who should prevail, based on the most reasonable explanation of the facts, is substantive law. Procedural law also plays a part in the litigation and includes the following:

There are distinct and sequential steps in filing a civil suit seeking specific remedies against particular persons (called "defendants".) These are discussed in detail in the next chapter.