Summary: A persistent misconception in legal discourse is that findings or determinations of a civil court are binding on a criminal court, despite no such rule being codified in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, or its successor statute, the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023. This belief often leads to the argument that a civil judgment should conclusively govern subsequent criminal proceedings. However, this position does not reflect the true legal framework. The Hon’ble Supreme Court’s decision in Prem Raj v. Poonamma Menon & Anr., tracing the evolution of law on this point, provides much-needed clarity, reaffirming the distinct nature, standards of proof, and purposes of civil and criminal proceedings, and explaining the limited evidentiary value, rather than absolute binding effect, of civil court findings in criminal trials.