Which area of law governs the rights and responsibilities between individuals?

Private law is the area of law that governs the rights and responsibilities between individuals. This branch of law covers legal relationships and disputes between private individuals or organizations. It includes areas such as contract law, tort law, property law, and family law, which all focus on the legal interactions between private parties rather than the state.

In contrast, public law involves relationships between individuals and the state, dealing with matters such as constitutional law, administrative law, and criminal law. Criminal law specifically pertains to offenses against the state and societal order, which is distinct from the interactions between individual citizens. Administrative law regulates the activities of governmental agencies, ensuring that they operate within the law. Each of these other areas does not primarily focus on individual-to-individual relationships, making private law the correct answer for this question.