In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, a private right is one that a

private citizen A private citizen is someone who does not have an official or professional role in a given situation. The same person may be a private citizen in one role, and an official in another. For example, a legislator is an official when voting in the l ...

can vindicate in

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

. Compared to public rights, a citizen must be able to show that they have "sustained or is immediately in danger of sustaining some direct injury" and not that they "suffer in some indefinite way in common with people generally." (see Frothingham v. Mellon, 262 U.S. 447, 488 (1923)). A distinction can be made between criminal rights and private rights, arguing that restrictions against ex post facto laws were not designed to protect citizens' contract rights.

References

*Black's Law Dictionary *Frothingham v. Mellon, 262 U.S. 447 *Hart & Weschler's Federal Courts and the Federal Court System, 5th ed. (2003) Law of the United States {{US-law-stub