Civil Code 2025

Civil Code 2025

Authored by u/Sorry_IamNotCreative

Passed by the Senate on 15 March 2025

Signed by the President on 16 March 2025

Part 1 - People and Entities

Article 1. Provisions

§1. The Civil Code includes the legal provisions that determine the rights of individuals, as persons, their obligations, contracts and civil actions.

§2. Ignorance of the law is no excuse to disregard it.

Article 2. Natural Person

§1. A natural person is any individual human being who is or was a member of SimDemocracy and its associated territories, recognized as a subject of rights and obligations under the Law from the moment of joining the community.<ref name="nf19">Definitione Iuris Personas Emendatio passed 9 January 2026 and signed 11 January 2026.</ref>

§2. Every natural person has the capacity to acquire rights and assume obligations, except as limited by law.

Article 3. Rights of a Natural Person

§1. The right to an identity, including their name and personal data.

§2. The right to privacy and protection from unauthorized use of their image or information.

§3. The right to enter into contracts, acquire rights, and assume obligations.

§4. Right to the £1.50 steak bake.

Article 4. Legal Entity

§1. A legal entity is an organization or association recognized by law as having rights and obligations separate from its members.

§2. Legal entities include, but are not limited to:

§2.1. Private Entities, Corporations, associations, and foundations,

§2.2. Public Entities, Government agencies and institutions,

§2.3. Hybrid Entities, Organizations that function under both public and private law.

Article 5. Rights and Obligations of a Legal Entity

§1. The right to a distinct legal identity, including a name, and status recognized under law.

§2. A legal entity has the capacity to enter into contracts, acquire rights, and assume obligations.

§3. A legal entity must comply with all laws and regulations governing its formation, internal governance, activities, reporting requirements, and dissolution.

Part 2 - Obligations

Article 6. Definitions

§1. An obligation is a legal relationship in which a debtor is bound to provide, do, or refrain from doing something for the benefit of a creditor, in accordance with the law or an agreement.

Article 7. Sources of Obligations

§1. Obligations shall arise from any of the following;

§1.1. Legal Transaction: A declaration of will of one or more people that seeks to achieve a legal effect.

§1.2. Torts: Liability for harm caused to others due to negligence or intent.

§1.3. Legal Provisions: Duties imposed by law, including administrative and governance-related obligations.

Article 8. Extinction of Obligations

§1. Obligations may be extinguished through any one of the following means;

§1.1. Performance: The debtor fulfilling their duty as agreed.

§1.2. Compensation: Mutual obligations canceling each other out.

§1.3. Remission: Voluntary forgiveness of the debt by the creditor.

§1.4. Force Majeure: When fulfillment is rendered impossible due to extraordinary circumstances beyond the debtor’s control.

Article 9. Liability for Non-Performance

§1. If a debtor fails to fulfill an obligation, they are liable for damages unless they prove that performance was impossible due to external causes beyond their control.

Article 10. Enforceability of Obligations

<ref name="civ25amendment">Civil Code Amendment passed 24 April 2025 and signed 25 April 2025.</ref>§1. Obligations are enforceable by law when they arise from a lawful cause and have a determinate object or conduct that is possible, lawful, and defined or definable.

§2. No obligation may be enforced unless it complies with the requirements established by this law, including capacity of the parties, mutual consent, and a lawful purpose.

§3. Obligations that are impossible, unlawful, indeterminate, or contrary to public order or morality shall be deemed null and unenforceable.

Part 3 - Contracts

Article 11. Provisions

§1. A contract is a voluntary agreement between two or more people or legal entities to enter into a legal relationship to produce a legal effect.

§2. Valid contracts are legally binding and must be performed in good faith. They may only be modified or terminated by mutual agreement or by causes established by law.

§3. Contracts are rendered null and void if;

§3.1 The contract requires one or both parties to engage in illegal activity.

§3.2. One party deceives the other into signing the contract.

§3.3. A party to the contract was under duress or undue influence at the time of signing.

§3.4. The contract requires actions that are impossible to fulfill.

§3.5. Both parties misunderstand key terms of the contract.

§3.6. There is no exchange of value between the parties.

§4. Contracts must be interpreted according to the good faith of the parties, the common intention behind their terms, and prevailing customs in similar agreements.

Article 12. Formation

§1. Contracts may be formed verbally or through writing, provided they fulfill the necessary legal requirements.

§2. A contract is valid only if it meets the following requirements:

§2.1. The voluntary and informed agreement of the parties.

§2.2. The legal ability of the parties to enter into a contract.

§2.3. A lawful, possible, and determined or determinable subject matter.

§2.4. A legitimate and lawful reason for the contract’s existence.

§3. A contract is formed when an offer is made and accepted without modification. Acceptance must be communicated through the agreed or customary means.

§4. Consent is invalid if obtained through,

§4.1. A fundamental mistake about the nature or terms of the contract.

§4.2. Deception intended to induce the other party into the contract.

§4.3. Coercion that forces a party into agreement against their free will.

§4.4. Taking advantage of a party’s vulnerable position to impose unfair terms.

§5. A government contract shall not be invalidated solely on the grounds of §4.4 unless;

§5.1. A preliminary judicial review by an inferior court determines that there is substantial evidence of improper government pressure,

§5.2. The plaintiff can demonstrate, with clear and convincing evidence, that the government applied undue pressure that left no reasonable alternative for the contracting party.

Article 13. Termination of Contracts

§1. Contracts cease their legal effects by any of the following;

§1.1. When all obligations are fulfilled.

§1.2. When parties consent to end the contract.

§1.3. When a breach justifies dissolution.

§1.4. When the agreed term or condition for termination is met.

§2. When a contract is rescinded, the parties must restore what they received under the agreement unless restitution is impossible or unjust.

Article 14. Breach and Liability

§1. A breach occurs when a party fails to perform their contractual duties. The injured party may demand;

§1.1. Enforcement of the contract as agreed.

§1.2. Compensation for losses caused by the breach.

§1.3. Rescission of the contract with restitution where applicable.

§2. A party is not liable for breach if performance is rendered impossible due to unforeseen and unavoidable events beyond their control.

Article 15. Modification

§1. A contract may be modified or replaced by a new one if all parties agree and the modification meets legal requirements.

Part 4 - Civil Process

Article 16. Civil Jurisdiction

§1. People and Entities of SimDemocracy may only have civil claims filed against them for the following reasons:

§1.1. The infractions of the law were committed in r/SimDemocracy and its associated territories,

§1.2. The infraction of the law directly affected r/SimDemocracy or its associated territories, or

§1.3. The infraction of the law occurred in direct messages between two or more members of r/SimDemocracy.

Article 17. Burden of Proof

§1. The burden of proof in all civil cases is the balance of probabilities, defined as being more likely true than false.

§2. For a defendant to be found liable in a civil hearing, the plaintiff must prove on the balance of probabilities that their claim is truthful and that the defendant is liable for the damages incurred by the plaintiff.

§3. A rebuttable presumption is taken as true until proven false. It may be rebutted on the balance of probabilities, unless otherwise specified.

Article 18. Civil Case Procedure

§1. The plaintiff will seek charges most applicable for the facts presented.

§2. In a case where one action fits many torts, all may be pursued by the plaintiff.

§3. If the tort pursued by the plaintiff is not appropriate for a given violation, but another tort is, the presiding judge has the duty to inform the plaintiff to refile their lawsuit under the more applicable tort.

§4. If there are multiple torts committed by an accused person; they are to be tried in a single civil hearing where practicable.

§5. The remedy is to be individually determined by whether the accused is liable for each tort; and the remedy is to be all of the remedies for all of the charges added together.

§6. By voluntary agreement of both parties, the civil case may be settled outside of court.

Article 19. Remedies and Damages

§1. Remedies may be given as damages, which are to be given in amounts of tau and time in days to pay, or as an injunction, or both.

§2. A remedy issued by a court takes force the moment it is declared.

§3. The presiding judge will decide if the actions described warrant an injunction.

§4. In the initial filing of a suit, the plaintiff has the opportunity to declare desired damages.

§5. Damages are to be assigned if the defendant's actions have caused an undue financial or social burden on the plaintiff, or if the tort in question assigns such.

§6. The presiding judge decides on the final amount of damages to be assigned to the defendant if he is found liable.

§7. The final amount of damages will not exceed the amount stated in the plaintiff’s initial request.

§7.1. Should the plaintiff have no initial request for damages, the amount is not to exceed a month’s wages for the President of SimDemocracy, or an equivalent high-paying role should the President be unpaid.

§8. No provision regarding money and damages will apply when there is no economy in r/SimDemocracy.

§9. The presiding judge will rely on his best professional judgment to offer remedies within the bounds set by legislation and fair and proportional to the tort committed.

§10. No natural person or legal entity may be relieved of liability for violating the law only because it was unaware of its content.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 20. Statutory Defences

§1. Statutory defenses contained are mitigating factors in considering remedies.

§2. Necessity is a statutory defence where a tort has been committed in order to prevent greater harm. To be accepted, the defendant must prove that

§2.1. The social harm of the tort he sought to avoid is higher than the social harm of the tort he has been charged with,

§2.2. The defendant had no reasonable alternative,

§2.3. The defendant ceased to engage in the prohibited conduct as soon as the danger passed, and

§2.4. The defendant did not himself create the danger he sought to avoid.

§2.5. If the defence of necessity is accepted, the remedy for a tort may be nullified entirely, or reduced at the discretion of the presiding judge.

§3. Consent is a statutory defence where a tort was done by the defendant to one who voluntarily and knowingly consented to it and remained consenting throughout the whole process of the action.

§3.1. If the defence of consent is accepted, the defendant is to be held not liable.

Part 5 - Torts

Article 21. Defamation

§1. Defamation is the act of knowingly communicating false or misleading statements, or lying by omission, about a person or entity with the intent to cause harm.

§2. Statements made in jest or sarcastically without malicious intent are not defamation.

§3. Disseminating defamatory statements with the reasonable belief that they were true is exempt, unless the defendant was willfully blind to the statement’s defamatory nature.<ref name="CPADA2025" />

§4. The damages available for defamation shall be payment for any salary or business lost if applicable along with payment for any reputational damage suffered as determined by the court based upon the following factors :

(a) the nature and gravity of the defamation;

(b) the conduct, position and standing of the plaintiff and the defendant;

(c) the mode and extent of publication;

(d) the natural indignation of the court at the injury caused to the plaintiff;

(e) the conduct of the defendant from the time the defamatory statement is published to the very moment of the verdict;

(f) whether an apology and retraction of the defamatory statement was made;

(g) the presence of malice; and,

(h) Such other factors as the court may consider necessary.

The Court may also require the defendant to retract the statement publicly. <ref name="CPADA2025">Amended by the Copyright Protection Act and Defamation Amendment passed 20 March 2025 and signed 22 March 2025.</ref>

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 22. Wrongful Dismissal

§1. Wrongful dismissal is the termination of an employee who did not warrant termination.

§2. The defendant must prove just cause for the termination.

§3. Damages for wrongful dismissal are payment for any salary or business lost.

§4. Having insufficient funding to pay a person shall be just cause for termination.<ref name="omnibus">December 2025 Omnibus Amendments passed and signed on 14 December 2025.</ref>

Article 23. Withheld Salary

§1.Withheld salary is the lack of complete payment to an employee of an entity for three (3) or more days following the expected payday.

§2. Damages for withheld salary are payment to the plaintiff of double the salary withheld.

§3. Withheld salary for the purposes of tax payment is not covered by this article.

Article 24. Breach of Contract

§1. Breach of contract is the infringement of the terms of a legal contract, including a failure to fulfill obligations.

§2. Damages for breach of contract is payment to the plaintiff up to double the demonstrated value of the contract.

Article 25. Impersonation

§1. Impersonation is acting as another in order to mislead a legal entity of one’s identity or powers for malicious purposes.

§2. Remedies available for impersonation are an injunction against the actions resulting from impersonation as well as payment for any salary or business lost, if applicable.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 26. Violation of Privacy

<ref name="privacy">Violation of Privacy Amendment passed by the Senate on 20 July 2025 and signed by the President on 21 July 2025.</ref>§1. A violation of privacy shall be defined as releasing non-public information of a given legal entity without consent of the legal entity themselves.

§1.1. This shall not include releasing non-public information of a given legal entity for the sake of whistleblowing as described in Article 20§2 of the Constitution<ref name="whistle">Text of Article 20§2 Right to Whistleblow as of the date of passage: Whistleblowing shall be the public disclosure or release of classified or private information in the public interest.</ref>

§2. The plaintiff must prove that the release of the non-public information affects the legal entity negatively to get damages.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 27. Uncompensated Expropriation

§1. Uncompensated expropriation is the direct or indirect expropriation of private property which has not been abandoned by the State without fairly compensating the affected parties.

<ref name="east">Enforcing Asset Security from Terrorists Act 2025 passed by the Senate on 13 October 2025, then signed by the President on 15 October 2025. </ref>§2. The state shall not be liable for Uncompensated Expropriation if said seized assets were held on behalf of a proscribed organization, as outlined in both Article 52. Racketeering of the Criminal Code, as well as the EAST Act.

§3. Damages for uncompensated expropriation are two times fair compensation for the private property and/or business lost.

Article 28. Breach of Police Accountability

§1. The following constitute a breach of police accountability:

§1.1. Failing to follow procedure as required by law in exercising emergency banning powers,

§1.2. Exercising the powers of the SimDemocracy Bureau of Investigation in a way that constitutes gross misconduct, or

§1.3. Breaching a duty of care owed to the public to ensure that proper standards are enforced within the SDBI and that unlawful orders are not issued.

§2. Only the SDBI Director and the Attorney General have a duty of care under §1.3 of this article.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 29. Breach of Civil Rights

§1. A breach of civil rights is committed when a government employee or employees, or a governmental body, violates a citizen’s or a group of citizens’ constitutional or statutory rights, and does so with intention or recklessness.

§2. A person may be held liable for breach of civil rights even if he was not acting in an official governmental capacity if he nevertheless exercised powers associated with a current or former governmental position, or if he had knowledge of the violation of civil rights but failed to report such, or if he was unaware of the violation of civil rights due to negligence, or if he failed to take reasonable action to prevent violations of civil rights.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 30. Torts under Common Law

§1. If there is no appropriate statutory or common law tort, the plaintiff may propose for a new tort to be recognized under common law.

§2. In the announcement of the suit, the plaintiff must specify the proposed tort and the remedies sought.

§3. In the verdict, a judge may choose to recognize the proposed tort under common law, or not. If the proposed tort is recognized, the judge must specify the name of the tort and a definition in the verdict.

§4. All torts under common law are subject to appeal and review by the Supreme Court.

§5. This article is not to be construed to affect the statutory powers of the Senate, who may choose to codify common law torts into the Civil Code, and who may choose to repeal common law torts at its discretion.

Article 31: Abuse of Process

<ref name="process">Abuse of Process Act 2025 passed 30 March 2025 and signed 31 March 2025.</ref>§1. Abuse of Process is the misuse of a legal process to pursue an improper purpose, and to cause harm to a legal entity.

§2. A legal process, for the purposes of this Article, is defined as a process that is initiated through a court or tribunal which affects the legal rights, interests or liabilities of a legal entity.

§3. When determining whether the use of a process is improper, a court shall consider –

(a) Whether the use of the process was improper, in comparison to regular proceedings and the intended use of the process;

(b) Whether the use of the process impugned the integrity of the justice system; and,

(c) Whether the process was pursued in a manner that was unjustifiably excessive, unreasonable, or disproportionate to the legal matter at hand.

§4. This tort shall apply for actions taken after the date of passage of the Abuse of Process Act 2025.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 32: Administrative Misuse of Power

<ref name="admin-misuse">Administrative Accountability Amendment Passed 19 May 2025 and signed 20 May 2025.</ref> §1. Administrative Misuse of power is the use of administrative or executive power in a way contrary to higher law or legal authority. Both actions and inactions may be use for the purpose of this section. The SDIOA is considered as using executive power for the purpose of this section only. Supervisors are further using executive power.

§2. The plaintiff does not have to prove monetary damages in order to invoke this section, as long as they can prove their individualised right was violated and negatively impacted. An individualised right for this purpose shall be such a right, explicit or implicit, as guaranteed by the higher law or legal authority.

§3. Remedies for this section, additional to those provided in this Code, shall be any of the following, where applicable:

§3.1. The Court ordering the administrative or executive to perform an action when it has previously omitted doing so and when the administrative or executive had no discretion in whether to perform the action in the first place.

§3.2. The Court ordering the administrative or executive to stop or reserve performing an action, when the administrative or executive had no discretion in whether to perform the action in the first place.

§3.3. The Court declaring the action performed or not performed illegal.

§3.4. The Court ordering the administrative or executive to redecide on whether to stop or reverse performing an action or whether to perform an action, while respecting the Courts decision on the illegality of the previous decision, when the administrative or executive had discretion in whether to perform the action in the first place.

§3.5. The Court granting a fair amount of money to the plaintiff for their distress to be paid by the relevant department or where one cannot be determined by the State, not exceeding the presidential bi-weekly salary and only where necessary to deter the executive or administrative from further engaging in illegal conduct.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

§4. This tort shall only apply where only a common law tort or no other torts apply.

Article 33: Harassment

<ref name="harass">Harassment Prevention Act 2025 passed and signed on 7 July 2025.</ref> §1. The tort of Harassment is defined as intentionally causing harassment, alarm, distress, or humiliation<ref name="omnibus" /> to any person.

§1.1. The following are examples of acts which may, under certain circumstances, constitute Harassment:

(a) Repeatedly using threatening, abusive or insulting words;

(b) Encouraging or causing a person to perform acts of self harm;

§1.2. It is a defense for a person to prove that their conduct was reasonable under the circumstances.

§1.2.1. When considering whether conduct is reasonable in this Tort, the Judge shall consider –

(a) The nature, purpose and seriousness of the conduct;

(b) The degree of tolerance of similar conduct by reasonable persons;

(c) Whether the person being harassed had taken action to avoid or mitigate the conduct.

§1.3. It is also a defense for a person to prove that they had no reason to believe that the behavior would have been seen by the person alleging harassment.

See also Civil Code Compensation Guideline Act 2025.

Article 34: Failure to Comply with SDSB Regulations

<ref name="rocky-sdsb">Added by the Rocky-nomics Pt. 2, Electric Boogaloo Act Passed by the Senate and signed by the President on 9 August 2025.</ref>§1. Any knowing, negligent, or intentional violations of the regulations set by the SimDem State Bank, as permitted under the Rocky-nomics Pt. 2, Electric Boogaloo Act shall constitute a civil offense, warranting a fine of at least five-thousand (5,000) tau. Knowing, negligent, or intentional violations of the above regulations may also warrant a barring from owning/operating a foreign exchange and/or financial institution, compensatory damages to any damaged parties, and punitive damages.

Article 35: Fraud

<ref name="fraud">Criminal Code 2020 and Civil Code 2025 Patches Amendment 2026 passed 24 April 2026 and signed 25 April 2026.</ref> §1. Fraud is deception, either intentionally or recklessly, to deprive a person or legal entity of a legal right, or to obtain from a person or legal entity a benefit by unlawful or unfair means.

§1.1. Deception for the purposes of this Article includes—

(a) making a false representation of fact;

(b) presenting falsified, altered, or misleading evidence, documents, screenshots, or records;

(c) dishonestly concealing a material fact in circumstances where doing so would mislead a person or legal entity; or,

(d) using any other dishonest means to create a false belief.

§2. To establish liability for Fraud, the plaintiff must prove on the balance of probabilities that—

(a) the defendant engaged in deception;

(b) the deception was intentional;

(c) the deception deprived the plaintiff or another person or legal entity of a legal right, or obtained a benefit by unlawful or dishonest means; and,

(d) the plaintiff suffered harm as a result.

§3. A statement made honestly and without intent to deceive shall not constitute Fraud merely because it was incorrect.

§4. Remedies available for Fraud may include—

(a) payment for any salary, business, property, or other financial loss caused by the fraud;

(b) restitution or return of any property, payment, position, or benefit wrongfully obtained;

(c) rescission of any agreement or transaction induced by the fraud, where practicable; and,

(d) an injunction against the continuation or repetition of the fraudulent conduct.

Appendix

Appendix A

§1. The Civil Code 2020 is repealed in its entirety.

Appendix B

§1. Article 9 of the Commerce Actualizations Act is repealed in its entirety.

§2. The Government Contracts System Act shall be regulated under this Civil Code.

Amendments

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