What You Should Know About Your Case

Law suits are intense.  If you've been sued, you have to respond. Once you are served, failure to respond may result in a judgment being brought against you by default.  If you've been served with any legal documents, contact our office immediately so that we can evaluate the best way to proceed.  In some instances, motions can be made to dismiss the action against you or, at the very least, discussions can be had with opposing counsel to determine if there are any settlement possibilities.   If not, then a response needs to be filed usually within 30 days of service of the complaint.  In many instances, opposing counsel will be cooperative and as a courtesy, allow the other side additional time to respond.  

If you are a plaintiff - meaning you are the one instituting the lawsuit - there are a number of things to consider.  First, you need to know if you have a valid case.  You may have been wronged, but, there are a number of things to consider before you make the decision to proceed with a lawsuit.  Lawsuits are costly both financially and emotionally.  To prevail in a court of law, you need to have a valid legal basis for your suit and sufficient evidence to support your position. 

Secondly, you need to determine what your damages are and compare what amount you may recover to what it will ultimately cost you.  For example, if you have been damaged in the amount of $20,000 and the entire case will cost you $30,000, that is not a successful case, even if you do win.  

Lastly, you need to be willing to hang in there for a long period of time before your case will either be settled or obtain a judgment.  Court cutbacks have increased the time that it takes for a case to be heard.  Expect that your case will go on for at least 2-3 years, maybe longer.

Steps to A Lawsuit

The ultimate goal of any lawsuit is to receive a judgment, i.e. a final ruling from a court of law.  It commences with the filing of a legal complaint that is ultimately served (personally delivered) to the person you are suing (defendant.)  When the defendant is served with the complaint, advising him or her of the legal issues being charged against them, the defendant or defendants must file a response.  In many instances, the response may be a challenge to the complaint which may require the plaintiff to redraft the complaint.  When the defendant files an Answer to the Complaint, the first phase of the lawsuit is complete.

The second phase of a lawsuit is called the discovery phase.  In this phase, which may go on for a year of more, both sides use a number of different document requests to obtain information from the opposing side.  These documents ask questions, request copies of documents and ultimately attempt to discover the evidence that each side holds that supports their case.  Ultimately, usually after all written discovery is complete, the parties take each other's depositions along with those of witnesses and experts.  The purpose of depositions is to discover what these parties will say at trial so that there are no surprises. 

In the time period between the filing and service of the complaint and trial, disputes may arise that have to be resolved by the court.  Often these are what are referred to as discovery motions meaning that a dispute has arisen between the parties regarding what needs to be released in the discovery process.  These disputes are referred to as motions meaning the party moves the court to make a ruling to resolve the dispute.

Eventually, the court will set a date for trial.  All parties are entitled to a jury trial but it has to be requested and jury fees must be posted at least 25 days before the trial date.  Otherwise, the trial will be held solely before the judge.  In our legal system, it is often seen that a ruling by a jury of 12 separate people rather than just one person (the judge) is more advantageous, but that is something that is determined in each case.  In some instances, a case will do just as well before a judge as before a jury, maybe even better!

Attorneys put in a lot of work preparing for trial.  It requires the filing of numerous documents including motions to exclude certain evidence from coming into trial, as well as subpoenas to witnesses, lists of evidence, lists of witnesses, trial briefs, and instructions to be read to the jury. 

In many cases, particularly cases that involve some sort of personal injury, experts will be hired to give their professional opinions on what damages or injuries have been suffered and how much should be awarded if a judgment is issued.  Though such experts are very expensive, they are often critically important to you winning your case. 

A trial can run from a few days to several weeks.  Each side is allocated a certain amount of time to present their case and to counter whatever evidence the otherside offers.  When both sides complete presentation of their case, it is submitted to the trier of fact (judge or jury) for a final decision.  Once the decision is rendered, it usually ends the case but a dissatisfied party has a right to appeal the decision if they truly believe an error was made in the way the case was handled.  If such an error occurred (a legal error not a factual one) written appeal papers are filed with an appellate court.  The attorney handling the appeal is often a specialist in appeals.  They file an appellate brief and are given an opportunity to orally argue their position before a panel of appellate justices.  A ruling will be rendered by the appellate court, but an aggrieved party still has one more chance to have their case reviewed by the Supreme Court.  In this instance, a brief is filed with the State Supreme Court and, if approved for review, another opportunity will be set to argue the issues before this court.  The Supreme Court is the final arbiter of the issues.  No further appeals are available.  

Whether your case is in state or federal court, the procedures are essentially the same as those listed above.  The difference is the location of the case in either a state court or in a federal court.  Federal court limits the cases that are allowed to only those that involve an issue of federal (not state) law or a dispute over the amount of $75,000 that involves parties from different states.  

There are numerous areas of law that can be violated to lead to a civil action. Criminal cases are completely separate and are only brought by prosecutors that represent a governmental agency.  But individuals can institute non-criminal cases against others for violation of law.  If you are involved in a dispute over a contract, in your business, or even between friends or family members, call A. Singer Law today so we can advise you on the best way to proceed.