{"id":1585,"date":"2022-10-13T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-13T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/?p=1585"},"modified":"2023-06-15T15:45:38","modified_gmt":"2023-06-15T19:45:38","slug":"what-is-criminal-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/careers\/what-is-criminal-law","title":{"rendered":"What Is Criminal Law?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You may know shows like Law & Order, The Practice, and Better Call Saul for their intense, high-stress, and sometimes emotional scenes, but they\u2019re based on a very real career path in criminal law. So, what is criminal law, and is it as dramatic and extreme as these shows make it out to be?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Criminal Law Definition<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Criminal law is an area of the law that concerns crimes and laws applied to those who commit them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are two main types of criminal law offenses: felonies and misdemeanors. The most serious crimes are felonies, which include offenses like murder, robbery, and arson. Misdemeanors are more minor offenses, like traffic violations or petty thefts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the FBI<\/a>, the most common crimes are larceny (theft), burglary, and aggravated assault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are federal criminal laws and state-specific ones. A penalty for a crime depends on what kind of crime you\u2019ve committed, where you committed it, how involved you were with the crime, and whether this is your first criminal offense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Do People Who Work in Criminal Law Do?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Criminal lawyers apply criminal law to defend clients accused of a crime or hold those who have committed a crime accountable. Much of their work involves going to court to represent their various clients. When they\u2019re not in court, they might research a case and the applicable law or communicate with their clients to update them about their next court appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA typical day for me starts with a 5 a.m. workout, bond hearings, or court at 9 a.m., running to the next court in one of four jurisdictions,\u201d Amy Lawrence, criminal defense lawyer at The Lovely Law Firm Injury Lawyers, says. \u201cIt goes all day with calls to clients or jail visits in between hearings. My last hearing begins at 5 p.m., and I\u2019m home by 7 p.m. if I\u2019m lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

>>MORE: <\/strong>Experience a day in the life of a criminal lawyer with Leo Cussen\u2019s Criminal Law Virtual Experience Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Civil vs. Criminal Law<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Civil and criminal law are both types of law where someone (or an entity like a business) has been harmed, injured, killed, or violated. Civil law<\/a> focuses explicitly on disputes between individuals, and court cases are about fixing the wrong one person has committed against another. Usually, these are remedied by one person paying the person they\u2019ve wronged to compensate for the damages they\u2019ve caused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples of Civil Law Cases<\/strong><\/td>Examples of Criminal Law Cases<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Malpractice<\/td>Assault and battery<\/td><\/tr>
Custody disputes<\/td>Homicide<\/td><\/tr>
Property damage<\/td>Theft<\/td><\/tr>
Defamation<\/td>Rape<\/td><\/tr>
Breach of contract<\/td>Illegal substance possession<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In criminal law, the government files the case (rather than a person). The court either finds the person accused guilty or not guilty, or the person accused pleads guilty. If they\u2019re found guilty, they\u2019re punished for the specific crimes they\u2019re found guilty of and usually go to jail or pay a fine as punishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Criminal Law Job Titles<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are different types of criminal lawyers depending on who the lawyer is representing. Defense attorneys represent defendants accused of a crime. They may be a private attorney, which means the client pays for their services, or a public defender, who serves clients who can\u2019t afford their own lawyers. On the opposite side, prosecuting attorneys represent the government. Prosecuting attorneys may work at the local, state, or federal level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to working as a criminal lawyer, many different jobs in the criminal justice field interact with criminal law daily but do not require a law degree. Examples of these jobs include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n