Lawsuit
Civil law is different then criminal law. It is when two parties, the plaintiff and the defendant dispute a disagreement and have it resolved in either municipal, county, state, or federal civil court. A plaintiff is the person that files a claim with his or her attorney, and the defendant is the party in question that is being sued. The defendant also has the right to hire an attorney in the civil law case. If the civil law case is severe in nature, it is in the defendant’s best interest to hire an attorney to represent him, her, or the party.
Depending on what the civil law claim pertains to, some rules and regulations differ from case to case. But generally, a civil law case has several key steps from the start of the civil law trial to the point when a verdict is reached.
1. Civil law pleading:
The first step of a lawsuit is for the plaintiff to file a claim with a court that states that the plaintiff and his or her attorney are seeking monetary relief from damages caused by the defendant. After paperwork for the claim is approved and filed, a court clerk will than hands a signed summons document to the plaintiff to be served to the defendant. The defendant, in some instances, has the option to give a response to the claim, either admitting the wrongdoing or denying the wrongdoing. He or she can also file a dispute to the claim to have the allegations placed on him or her dismissed. A defendant will also choose whether or not hiring an attorney is necessary.
2. Evidence Disclosure before the civil law trial:
During the pre-trial stages of a lawsuit, evidence is gathered by both the plaintiff, defendant, and their attorneys. Also, it is important for both parties to come up with proper statements for the civil case to help further their chance of winning the case.
After all evidence is gathered, it is then disclosed to each party through a process called “discovery”. The reason for discovery in civil law cases is to prevent surprise elements of evidence showing up in a civil law trial. Another major reason for discovery is to bring to light any evidence that either the plaintiff or defendant were unaware of that could affect the validity of the lawsuit. If a plaintiff receives evidence that disproves their lawsuit to be true, he or she may be advised by his or her attorney to drop the lawsuit to save time and money because it will not turn out in his or her favor.
3. The civil trial and verdict:
Civil attorneys on both sides of the dispute assist them in presenting evidence and statements before a judge or jury. After hearing both sides of an argument, a verdict is reached that either favors the plaintiff, defendant, or neither party at all (usually happening when a case is thrown out).
4. The right for a party and attorney to appeal in a civil law case:
After a decision is made by a judge or jury, either party can dispute the verdict. Even the victorious party can dispute the rewards that are given to them if they feel they do not satisfy them.