In Civil Law
The doctrine of res judicata in nations that have a civil law legal system is much narrower in scope than in common law nations.
In order for a second suit to be dismissed on a motion of res judicata in a civilian jurisdiction, the trial must be identical to the first trial in the following manner: (1) identical parties, (2) identical theories of recovery, and (3) identical demands in both trials. In other words, the issue preclusion or collateral estoppel found in the common law doctrine of res iudicata is not present in the civilian doctrine. In addition if all else is equal between the two cases, minus the relief sought, there will be no dismissal based on res judicata in a civil law jurisdiction.
While most civilian jurisdictions have slightly broadened the doctrine through multiple exceptions to these three requirements, there is no consensus on which exceptions ought to be allowed.
Note: Louisiana (USA), a civil law jurisdiction, has in the last twenty years begun to follow the common law doctrine of res judicata.
Read more about this topic: Res Judicata
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