So, guilty until proven innocent, is this how things work now ?
What if I go now on facebook, create an account, use the name Rick Stratton and start posting random, "incriminating" stuff all over the internet, what then ?
What if I go now on facebook, create an account, use the name Rick Stratton and start posting random, "incriminating" stuff all over the internet, what then ?
Only works on naive people and lawyers who take advantage of them. Know your rights.
I had to look this one up. This Is Not Legal Advice.
"Proof beyond reasonable doubt" is the criminal _standard_ of proof, while the standard for civil cases is generally stated as balance of probabilities (but is a little more complicated than that)
The _burden_ of proof, on the other hand, is pretty much the same between criminal and civil cases. It's the plaintiff or prosecution's responsibility to prove their case, and if they can't do that to the standard required by law they lose. The defendant is under no obligation to do anything more than point out the flaws in the plaintiff's case.
Sometimes, though, the burden of proof shifts the other way. This usually happens when the defendant offers some kind of "affirmative defence". For example, if a defendant wanted to argue that a (civil) contract or a (criminal) confession was invalid because of duress, it would be up to the defence to produce evidence that this duress occurred. They could not just float the possibility of duress and force the prosecution/plaintiff to produce evidence that disproves it.
Unfortunately, the lawyers rule the day. Along with those powerful interests with the most money to hire the most lawyers. Yet another reminder why significant tort reform in the US is well overdue.