A liquid crystal device has a structure in which an electric field is applied across a liquid crystal in a direction substantially parallel to the plane of a substrate. A conductive film is formed on a first substrate on which an electric field control is provided, and also on a color filter substrate located opposite the first substrate, and the conductive films are maintained at either a ground voltage, a common electrode voltage, the center voltage of an image signal, a non-selection voltage of a scanning signal, or a logic voltage of an external driver or otherwise the voltage of the conductive films is maintained in a floating state. The liquid crystal device having the above structure displays a high-quality image without encountering an influence of electrostatic charges.