What is the legal test for certainty in a civil or criminal statute?

prohibited. A vague law may trap the innocent by not providing fair warning. Second, a vague law impermissibly delegates the legislative job of defining what is prohibited to policemen, judges, and juries, creating a danger of arbitrary and discriminatory application. Third, a vague law may have a chilling effect, causing people to steer a wider course than necessary in order to avoid the strictures of the law." (Ewing v. City of Carmel-By-The-Sea (1991) 234 Cal. App.3d 1579, 1594, 286 Cal.Rptr. 382.)

The standards for certainty in a civil statute are less exacting than the standards for a criminal statute. (Duffy v. State Bd. Of Equalization (1984) 152 Cal. App.3d 1156, 1173, 199 Cal.Rptr. 886.) "`It is true that "[c]ivil as well as criminal statutes must be sufficiently clear as to give a fair warning of the conduct prohibited, and they must provide a standard or guide against which conduct can be uniformly judged by courts...." [Citations.] However, "`[Reasonable certainty is all that is required. A statute will not be held void for uncertainty if any reasonable and practical construction can be given its language.' [Citation.] It will be upheld if its terms may be made reasonably certain by reference to other definable sources." [Citations.]' [Citation.] To be valid, a tax

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