There are two main kinds of law in South Africa, CRIMINAL LAW and CIVIL LAW. Constitutional law affects both criminal and civil law.

CRIMINAL LAW

In a criminal case the state prosecutes the accused person for committing a crime or breaking the law. ‘Prosecutes’ means the state makes a charge against someone. If the court finds the person guilty, the person can be sent to prison, or fined, or punished in some other way. Examples of different crimes and breaking the law include rape, public violence, assault, theft and trespass.

Usually the state is not the complainant (the one making a charge). The state prosecutes, but any person or individual can be the complainant and lay a charge against another person or against the state.
A criminal case can be brought against anyone who has broken the law, including a person who works for the state, such as a member of the police or defence force. So if, for example, you are unlawfully assaulted or shot by a member of the police or defence force you can bring a criminal case against them.
When a case is brought before a magistrate, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed the offence. ‘Beyond a reasonable doubt’ is the standard that must be met by the prosecution’s evidence in a criminal prosecution: that no other reasonable explanation can be drawn from the facts except that the defendant committed the crime, in this way overcoming the presumption that a person is innocent until proven guilty.

CIVIL LAW

Civil law is the set of rules that govern your private relationships with other people. The state does not take sides in a dispute between private people.

CIVIL LAW DEALS WITH cases such as marriage and divorce; if someone owes you money; rental agreements; evictions; damage to property; injuries to people and disputes over credit agreements.

A civil case is usually brought by a person (called the plaintiff) who feels that he or she was wronged by another person (called the defendant). If the plaintiff wins the case, the court usually orders the defendant to pay compensation (money).
Sometimes the court may also order a defendant to do, or stop doing, something – for example, to stop damaging the plaintiff’s property.
The state may be involved in a civil case as a party if it is suing or being sued for a wrongful act – for example, if government property is damaged or a government official injures somebody without good reason.
When a case is brought before the magistrate the plaintiff must prove “on a balance of probabilities” that the defendant is wrong. “On a balance of probabilities” means simply that one side has more evidence in its favour than the other, even by the smallest degree.

CRIMINAL AND CIVIL ACTIONS

Sometimes a person’s act may lead to both criminal and civil actions. For example, Piet hits one of the employees in his factory. This is a crime of assault. The state will prosecute him in the criminal court if the employee lays a charge against him. If there is enough proof to show that he is guilty, he may be punished by the state. But Piet ALSO causes pain to the employee. This is a damage that one person does to another person. The injured employee could sue Piet for damages and make him pay compensation for medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering. This will be a civil claim for damages through the civil court.