LAWSUITS
A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties against one or more parties in a civil court of law. The person who files the Complaint is the Plaintiff. The Defendant is the person who the Complaint is against. If you were served with a Complaint, then you should seek an Attorney to plan a strong defense. If you need to file a Complaint, then you should seek an Attorney to properly draft a Complaint. The Newby Law Office, LLC can help litigate a Complaint or a strong defense against a lawsuit. Schedule a consultation by clicking the button below to discuss your lawsuit. Im being sued. suing. lawsuit. summons. lawsuit lawyer.
The Plaintiff
A Plaintiff is the party who initiates a lawsuit. A Plaintiff may sue the Defendant for many reasons, such as: contract issues, issues with contractors, car accidents, property damages, business claims, and many other reasons. It is important to describe your claims completely in your Complaint. A skilled attorney can file a proper Complaint on your behalf. You should contact an attorney prior to filing your lawsuit.
The Defendant
In court proceedings, a Defendant is the party that a lawsuit is filed against. Sometimes it is not enough to be right. Even if all the facts are on your side, you could still lose the court case. You need to conduct a proper defense. That includes filing a good answer, strong motions, and creating sound arguments. Therefore, it is important to consult with an attorney to plan a proper defense.
Pleadings
A pleading is a formal written statement of one party's claims or defenses in response to another party's complaint in a civil action. The pleading is the first time that both sides lay out their case. The pleadings are important because these documents establish the direction of the case. Therefore, it is critical that each claim is clear and concise. If the Complaint does not clearly state the claim, the Defendant may and should file a Motion for A More Definite Statement to force the Plaintiff to file a better Complaint. Civ.R. 12(E). This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below to schedule a free consultation.
COMPLAINT
A Complaint is the formal document that begins a lawsuit. The Plaintiff files the Complaint with the court. The Complaint must “contain (1) a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the party is entitled to relief, and (2) a demand for judgment for the relief to which the party claims to be entitled.” Civ.R 8. If the Complaint is based on a contract, then the Contract must be attached to the Complaint. Civ.R. 10.
ANSWER
An Answer is the formal document filed by the Defendant to counter to Complaints claim(s). Each Defendant is required to file an Answer or another responsive document within twenty-eight (28) days. Civ.R. 12. The Defendant may file a countersuit to pursue their own claim. Some Countersuits are required to be filed.
SERVICE OF PROCESS
Service of process is the procedure by which a party to a lawsuit gives an appropriate notice of legal documents to another party. The method of Service is dependent on the type of document being Served. Civ.R. 5.
This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below for a free consultation.
Discovery
Discovery is a pre-trial procedure in a lawsuit in which each party obtains evidence from the other party or parties. Parties may “obtain discovery by one or more of the following methods: deposition upon oral examination or written questions; written interrogatories; production of documents, electronically stored information, or things or permission to enter upon land or other property, for inspection and other purposes; physical and mental examinations; and requests for admission.” Civ.R. 26. Discovery can be obtained from non-parties using subpoenas. When a discovery request is objected to, the requesting party may seek the assistance of the court by filing a motion to compel discovery. This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below to schedule a free consultation.
ADMISSIONS
A party may serve upon any other party a written request for the admission. Typically, these requests are made as a demand to admit something. (Ex. Admit that you drove the car). The response to the admission is usually one or two words. (Ex. Admit). Of course, you should consult an Attorney prior to responding to Admissions. But there is a small timeframe to respond. If an Admission is not responded to within twenty-eight (28) days, then the Admission is admitted to. This could prove fatal to the case of the non-responding party.
INTERROGATORIES
Interrogatories are written questions sent by one party to another as part of discovery. These written questions are limited in the number of questions and the extent of the question. A party cannot send the other party more than forty (40) interrogatory questions. Civ.R. 33. Further, some Courts have established a general rule that a party cannot ask a question that would require an extensive narrative. See Penn Central Transportation Company v. Armco, 27 Ohio Misc. 76, 271 N.E.2d 877, 879.
PRODUCTION OF
DOCUMENTS
A discovery notice to produce documents is a request that the other party produce certain documents at trial. This is an extensive discovery request. The rule states that “any party may serve on any other party a request to produce and permit the party making the request, or someone acting on the requesting party's behalf (1) to inspect and copy any designated documents or electronically stored information, including writings, drawings, graphs, charts, photographs, sound recordings, images, and other data or data compilations stored in any medium from which information can be obtained that are in the possession, custody, or control of the party upon whom the request is served; (2) to inspect and copy, test, or sample any tangible things that are in the possession, custody, or control of the party upon whom the request is served; (3) to enter upon designated land or other property in the possession or control of the party upon whom the request is served for the purpose of inspection and measuring, surveying, photographing, testing, or sampling the property or any designated object or operation on the property.” Civ.R. 34. There are many logical challenges with this type of discovery. Further, the requesting party will be limited to requesting documents that they do not have access to or would be too burdensome to provide.
DEPOSITIONS
A deposition is a witness’ sworn out-of-court testimony. It is used to gather information as part of the discovery process and, in limited circumstances, may be used at trial. The witness being deposed is called the “Deponent.” The Newby Law Office highly recommends this type of discovery to help frame the witness’ testimony and to know what the witness will say at trial. There are logical challenges with this type of discovery because the parties need to establish a date, time, and location of when the deposition can take place. The requesting party also needs to file a Notice of Deposition prior to the deposition taking place. If you do not feel comfortable doing a deposition, reach out to an attorney ASAP for help.
MOTION TO COMPEL
If one side fails to respond to requests for discovery by the deadline (usually twenty-eight days), the requesting party may choose to file a Motion to Compel Discovery. A Motion to Compel may be used if the other party provides incomplete responses, skipped questions, improper objection of a question, or an outright refusal to answer.
Before a party resorts to filing a motion to compel, the court often expects the requesting side provides a “good faith effort” to obtain a response from the opposition. This means that this type of motion is a last resort measure and that the parties have to work together. But do not hesitate to use this motion because the missing evidence could be critical to your case.
This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below for a free consultation.
Dispositive Motion
A dispositive motion is a motion seeking a trial court order entirely disposing of all or part of the claims in favor of the moving party without need for further trial court proceedings. This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below to schedule a free consultation.
MOTION FOR
SUMMARY JUDGMENT
A motion for summary judgment is a motion asking the court to issue summary judgment on at least one claim. The motion must show that no genuine issue of material fact exists, and that the opposing party loses on that claim even if all its allegations are accepted as true so the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. This is a powerful motion that should be considered with every case prior to trial.
MOTION TO DISMISS
A motion to dismiss is a formal request for a court to dismiss a case. The reasons for a dismissal vary greatly. For example, Civ.R. 41(a) allows for voluntary dismissal, which can be filed by the Plaintiff, with or without a court order. Or, Civ.R. 41(b) allows for an involuntary dismissal to be filed by the Defendant.
This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below for a free consultation.
Motions
A motion is a procedural device to bring a limited, contested issue before a court for decision. The party requesting the motion may be called the moving party or may simply be the movant. The party opposing the motion is the nonmoving party or nonmovant. This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below to schedule a free consultation.
MOTION FOR AN
AMENDED SCHEDULE
To request a change in an existing Scheduling Order, a Motion to Amend Scheduling Order should be filed. Consider whether the change will necessarily require a new trial date. Courts have busy schedules and each case have a timeline that most Courts try to follow. When a motion is filed, a new Proposed Scheduling Order should simultaneously be filed with the Court.
AN AGREED MOTION
FOR AN
AMENDED SCHEDULE
An Agreed Motion for an Amended Schedule (sometimes called a “Stipulated Motion”) is the same motion as above but both parties have worked together on the proposed schedule and motion.
This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below for a free consultation.
Trial
At the end of a lawsuit, a trial is where the parties get the opportunity to argue their cases in front of the trier of fact. Sometimes the trier of fact is a jury and sometimes it is just the judge. Who is the trier of fact is a major decision and you should discuss that decision with your attorney. Trials can be very long, stressful, hurtful, and an overall terrible experience. Even if you win, it may feel like you lost. You should contact an attorney to help with this process. This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below to schedule a free consultation.
OPENING
STATEMENTS
The opening statement at the beginning of the trial is limited to outlining facts. Therefore, the opening statement should not argue law. It is best to use this time to set the basic scene for the jurors (or the judge), introduce them to the core dispute(s) in the case, and provide a general road map of how the trial is expected to unfold.
WITNESS
TESTIMONY
What the witness actually says in court is called testimony. In court, the witness is called to sit near the judge on the witness stand. In order to testify, witnesses must take an oath to agree or affirm to tell the truth.
There are three types of witnesses:
A lay witness (the most common type) is a person who watched certain events and describes what they saw.
An expert witness is a specialist, someone who is educated in a certain area. They testify with respect to their specialty area only.
A character witness is someone who knows or knew the victim, the defendant, or other people involved in the case. Character witnesses usually don’t see the events take place but they can be very helpful in a case.
MOTION FOR A
DIRECTED VERDICT
A motion for a directed verdict may be made on the opening statement of the opponent, at the close of the opponent's evidence or at the close of all the evidence.
CLOSING ARGUMENT
Only after the jury has seen and heard the factual evidence of the case are the parties allowed to try to persuade them about its overall significance. Closing arguments are the opportunity for each party to remind jurors about key evidence presented and to persuade them to adopt an interpretation favorable to their position. At this point, parties are free to use hypothetical analogies to make their points; to comment on the credibility of the witnesses, to discuss how they believe the various pieces of the puzzle fit into a compelling whole, and to advocate why jurors should decide the case in their favor.
VERDICT
A verdict is the formal decision or judgment rendered by a court at the conclusion of a trial or legal proceeding. It represents the culmination of the entire legal process. Verdicts are reached by a judge or a jury, depending on the type of trial and jurisdiction.
This is not legal advice. Seek the advice of an attorney. Click the button below for a free consultation.
The information above is a quick review of a lawsuit and is not meant to be legal advice. The information above shows how complex and difficult a lawsuit can be. You may believe that it will be easy to prove your case. But the legal process may make it difficult to prove your case and you may lose your case by making a legal mistake. Therefore, it is important for you to contact an attorney to discuss your case. Sign up for our free consultation today to start discussing your lawsuit.