Quasi-criminal means a

lawsuit A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today ...

or equity proceeding that has some, but not all, of the qualities of a criminal

prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

. It may appear in either a

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

or a civil law

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

. It refers to "a court's right to punish for actions or omissions as if they were criminal". The

origins Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics and manga * ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002 * ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...

of the phrase comes from the

Latin language Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

word, ''quasi'', meaning somewhat, sort-of, alike or akin, to

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

, as in quasi-contract. ''Quasi'' is used "to indicate that one subject resembles another, with which it is compared, in certain characteristics, but there are intrinsic and material differences between them". During a civil or equity trial, a court may act as if it were a criminal case to punish a person for

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...

. In some cases, a court may impose

asset forfeiture Asset forfeiture or asset seizure is a form of confiscation of assets by the authorities. In the United States, it is a type of criminal-justice financial obligation. It typically applies to the alleged proceeds or instruments of crime. This ap ...

or another penalty. For example, a court has the right to punish actions or omissions of a

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...

in a

child support Child support (or child maintenance) is an ongoing, periodic payment made by a parent for the financial benefit of a child (state or parent, caregiver, guardian) following the end of a marriage or other similar relationship. Child maintenance is ...

case as if they were a criminal, penalizing the parent with a sentence of

jail A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are imprisoned under the authority of the state, usually as punishment for various cr ...

time.

Elements

''Quasi-criminal proceedings'' include a wide variety of matters, including prosecution for a violation of law or ordinance, psychiatric matters,

motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as a motorized vehicle, automotive vehicle, automobile, or road vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on railway track, rails (such as trains or trams), does not fly (such ...

law,

status offense A status offense is an action that is prohibited only to a certain class of people, and most often applied only to crimes committed by minors. In the United States, the term status offense also refers to an offense such as a traffic violation ...

family court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plaintif ...

actions, and equity proceedings such as a

writ In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrant (legal), Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and ''certiorari'' are commo ...

. What these various legal matters have in common are these factors: * They may be instituted by a

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

agent on behalf of a private citizen, or * They may be instituted by a private citizen on behalf of the government, '' ex rel''. * They implicate

fundamental rights Fundamental rights are a group of rights that have been recognized by a high degree of protection from encroachment. These rights are specifically identified in a constitution, or have been found under due process of law. The United Nations' Susta ...

or constitutional rights, subjecting the

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

involved to

strict scrutiny In U.S. constitutional law, when a law infringes upon a fundamental constitutional right, the court may apply the strict scrutiny standard. Strict scrutiny holds the challenged law as presumptively invalid unless the government can demonstrat ...

by the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

.Quasi criminal rights of persons charged with Motor vehicle offenses including DWI and Driving While Suspended
, citing ''State v. Cooper'', 129 N.J. Super. 229, 231 (App. Div.), certif. denied, 66 N.J. 329 (1974); ''State v. Selzer'', 57 N.J. Super. 327, 330 (Law Div. 1959); ''State v. Rowe'', 116 N.J.L. 48, 51 (1935); ''Vickey v. Nessler'', 230 N.J. Super. 141, 149 (1989); amongst other cases. ** Because of that, they may be subject to the Miranda warning enunciated under the

legal doctrine A legal doctrine is a framework, set of rules, Procedural law, procedural steps, or Test (law), test, often established through precedent in the common law, through which judgments can be determined in a given legal case. For example, a doctrine ...

in '' Miranda v. Arizona'' or foreign counterparts. ** They are subject to requirements for

bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Court bail may be offered to secure the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when ...

, if any.

Types of quasi-criminal proceedings

''Quasi-criminal'' actions include: * A violation of law, offense, or ordinance, especially a

law, parking ticket, or

traffic ticket A traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a motorist or other road user, indicating that the user has violated traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding ...

.Rules of the Cook County Circult Court, Illinois Website
. Accessed June 30, 2008.David L. Ratley, Judicial Council of Georgia, Administrative Office of the Courts, Memorandum, Zoning & Traffic Fine Questions as applied to POABF, December 18, 2003, found a
Georgia Courts Memo on Application of Quasi-criminal
. Accessed June 30, 2008. * Psychiatric matters, such as civil confinement,

mental hygiene Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

commitments, and similar proceedings.New York Mental Hygiene law, article 81. * Regulatory offenses, such as

health department A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entity, Subnational entities, such as State (administrative division), states, county, counties an ...

violations, hunting or fishing without a

license A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

, and driving while intoxicated or ability impaired ( D.W.I. or D.W.A.I.) when such is not a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

. *

Family court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plaintif ...

actions, including ''PINS'' ( person in need of supervision) or truancy,

juvenile delinquency Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is the act of participating in unlawful behavior younger than the statutory age of majority. These acts would be considered crimes if the individuals committing them were older. The term ...

, paternity or

filiation Filiation is the legal term for the recognized legal status of the relationship between family members, or more specifically the legal relationship between parent and child. As described by the Government of Quebec: Filiation is the relationship ...

child custody Child custody is a legal term regarding '' guardianship'' which is used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent or guardian and a child in that person's care. Child custody consists of ''legal custody'', which is the ri ...

, and child visitation ("parenting time"). It may also include, in some

states State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

, a

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...

action or family offense petition. * Equity proceedings such as a

qui tam In common law, a writ of ''qui tam'' is a writ through which private citizen, private individuals who assist a prosecution can receive for themselves all or part of the damages or financial penalties recovered by the government as a result of the p ...

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...

, and the like.

References

External sources

# Dennis P. Stolle & Mark D. Stuann, ''Defending Depositions in High-stakes Civil and Quasi-criminal Litigation'', West. Crim. Rev. 4(2), at pp. 134–142 (2003), found at

Criminal law

Elements

Types of quasi-criminal proceedings

See also

References

External sources