privaträttslig

Privaträttslig is an adjective used to describe matters related to private law (privaträtt). Private law is the branch of law that governs relationships between private individuals and private entities rather than the state. In Sweden, private law encompasses contracts, tort liability, property relations, family law, and succession, as well as corporate and association law. The rules are primarily found in civil or private-law statutes and are interpreted by ordinary civil courts and, where relevant, commercial courts.

The private-law regime aims to regulate voluntary obligations, property transactions, and personal relations between private actors, with remedies such as damages, specific performance, or restitution. Key areas include contract law, liability for harm (tort), property ownership and transfer, family matters, and inheritance. Private-law rules are often applied in commercial as well as private contexts, including business-to-business and consumer transactions within private-law frameworks.

Privaträttslig contrasts with offentlig rätt, or public law, which concerns relations between individuals and the state and includes constitutional, administrative, tax, and criminal law. Many issues can involve both private-law and public-law elements; courts determine which branch governs a dispute for procedural and substantive purposes. The term is commonly used in academic, professional, and judicial language to denote matters governed by private-law principles rather than public-law rules, including cross-border private-law issues in international contexts and EU harmonisation of private-law norms.