The Law

Civil & Criminal

A convenient way to think about cases is to divide them into two categories: civil and criminal. Criminal cases are brought by the government against an individual criminal defendant, alleging the person did something to violate the criminal laws of the United States or the State of Idaho. Civil cases include almost everything else – ranging from child adoptions or property disputes to class actions against pharmaceutical companies.

Legal Documents

The United States is based on the Rule of Law. All of the information on this website is based on federal and state laws. If you are interested in learning more about our laws, you can study The United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights and other Amendments as well as the United States Code and the Idaho Code.