Stages of Litigation
Since much of the publicity on legal matters focuses on the verdict or end result of a lawsuit, most people have a limited understanding of the many stages involved in the litigation process. Litigation is a broad and encompassing term that describes the process of garnering information and resolving legal disputes in court. Through litigation, individuals and businesses resolve a variety of disputes ranging from insurance payouts for personal injuries to trademark questions to contractual disputes.
With the wide array of legal issues being litigated in today's courts, it is important for businesses and individuals to understand the critical points of the litigation process. This article provides a broad overview of the litigation process, including how the process of filing pleadings and obtaining discovery can shape the litigation process.
Pleadings
Pleadings are essential to litigation, as they set forth the initial claims, allegations and defenses to factual and legal issues to be brought before the court. These documents also help to narrow and define the issues that will ultimately be litigated. Pleadings must be carefully written and, at times, revised to properly establish a party's legal claims.
A lawsuit begins with the plaintiff filing a complaint with the court and serving a copy of the complaint on the defendant(s). The complaint will state whether the plaintiff is seeking money damages and/or equitable relief, and what the legal and factual bases for seeking such relief are. Through the practice of notice pleading, plaintiffs need only give a short and plain statement of their claims showing that they are entitled to relief, and not a complete account of all the facts.
Once the defendant receives the complaint, he or she needs to file a response (called an "answer") explaining the legal and factual defenses to the plaintiff's claims, including any challenges to the court's jurisdiction over the defendant or the matter in question. The answer is vital to a defendant's case because it establishes which issues will be litigated and whether the case will likely depend on the disposition of factual or legal questions.
Discovery
After the initial pleadings, the next stage of litigation is usually discovery. Through discovery, each party attempts to glean information about the matter at hand, and to preserve documents and other evidence to later be used in court or in certain motions. Essentially, the parties use the discovery process to map out the set of facts that all sides will rely on when presenting their case to the court. Discovery can be conducted either in writing or through oral interviews, referred to as depositions.
Negotiations and Motion Practice
After discovery has been completed — or sometimes earlier — parties to litigation will usually attempt to resolve the matter prior to trial. Trials are expensive and often unpredictable. While many attorneys will engage in informal negotiations throughout the litigation process, more and more often courts are requiring litigants to sit down for formal mediation, where the parties negotiate through a neutral party.
Once certain facts have been established through discovery, one or both parties to litigation also often file motions for summary judgment and similar motions intended to convince the judge to decide the case prior to trial. Known broadly as "dispositive motions," these filings usually state one party's case, using the facts established and relevant case law to convince the judge that, even looking at things in the light most favorable to the opposing side, no reasonably person could decide in the opposition's favor.
The Trial
When the case does not reach a settlement and proceeds to trial, there are many procedural rules involved. The witness testimony, evidence, and the parties' arguments will be presented to a judge, a panel of judges, or a jury. When all of the evidence has been presented and closing arguments given, the judge or jury will deliberate and give a decision; the decision is called a verdict if a jury decides and a judgment if a judge or panel of judges decides. When a final judgment is entered, the losing party may have an opportunity to appeal one or all of the issues litigated.
Preparing to Meet With Your Attorney
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Preparing to Meet With Your Attorney
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