The party bringing the action (plaintiff) has the burden of establishing its right to recover by a preponderance of the evidence (more convincing to the trier of fact than the opposing evidence). The purpose of a civil action is to compensate the plaintiff for the defendant having violated a duty owed to the plaintiff. Breach of contract is an example of a civil action. Most of the trials represented on the TV court shows are civil action trials A Civil lawsuit is brought upon by one party against a second party to recover compensation or enforce some private right.