CIVIL

PROCEDURE
CIVIL LAW
WHAT IS CIVIL LAW?
 Civil law is a dispute between private
individuals or between an individual
and the government
 This is concerning an issue of law,
such as a breach of agreement
 Ex: Jeff sues the State of California
because he believes their “marijuana
law” violates the 5th amendment
WHAT IS CIVIL PROCEDURE?
 Courts can do nothing until one of the
parties call upon them to settle a
dispute
 Civil procedure is basically the steps
that are taken from the moment a
breach of agreement occurs to the end
of the trial
 It is important because everyone
deserves a shot at a fair, impartial
trial that is guaranteed by the
Constitution
DEBATE
Debate (Discussion); 2 min:
 As most of you know the system of justice we have today is very slow, hence: ‘the wheels of
justice turn slow’.
 The reason for the time a full length trial takes is because of the selection of jury and the cost
of it to the state
 In many places there is something called a bench trial, or a trial by judge, which costs less
and takes less time
Do you think that the rules of procedure should ever be relaxed or should
solutions such as a bench trial prevail?
 PROCEEDINGS
BEFORE A CIVIL
TRIAL
HIRING A LAWYER
 Usually the first thing that occurs in a
civil trial is an event that causes a party to
sue
 The next step is to hire a lawyer
 Hiring a lawyer is not as easy as many
expect as there certain steps that must be
followed
 Usually the time between a wrongful act Immediately after a crash always
call a lawyer
and filing a civil suit is called informal
discovery
STEPS TO HIRING A LAWYER
Steps to Hire a Lawyer:
1. Plaintiff contacts attorney who
investigates the case
2. They meet again and decide a course of
action
3. Once the lawyer is officially hired the
lawyer contacts the defendant
4. They meet and if they cannot find an
agreement, the wheels of justice begin
to roll
THE PLEADINGS
 Pleadings in a civil case are different
than in a criminal case
 In a civil case there are 2 documents: the
complaint and answer
 The complaint is a formal documents
written by the plaintiff for the reasons
the plaintiff is filing suit
It also consists of a brief description of the
facts and establishes jurisdiction

A typical complaint
document
METHODS OF SERVICE
Methods of
 The complaint is usually served, given, to the Service
defendant as a writ of summons
 A summons warns the defendant that a
default judgement may be made if they do
not respond to the complaint in a specified Not
Common
Common
amount of time
 The delivery of the summons can occur in
multiple ways:
Constructive Substituted Personal
1. Personal Service Service Service Service
2. Substituted Service
3. Constructive Service
METHODS OF SERVICE
 Distribution of Summons
Personal Service is the distribution of the
summons through an official of the law,
usually the sheriff
Substituted Service is the distribution of
the summons through the mail
 Only allowed in some states
Constructive Service is the posting of the
summons in the legal section of the
newspaper
 Generally not used anymore

This sheriff is delivering a

summons
THE PLEADINGS
 After the defendant receives the complaint
(how they receive it is covered later), they
file back an answer
 The answer is a document that makes
admissions1 and denials2
1. Admissions say the facts are correct
2. Denials say the facts proposed by the
plaintiff are wrong
 The defendant could file a counter suit, if
they feel they were violated, to which the
plaintiff would reply

A typical answer
document
ACTIVITY
Activity: Making and Receiving Answer/Complaint Documents
1. Partner up with another member, preferably the closest to you
2. Each person take an complaint and answer document
3. Fill out the complaint form for each other and then give them to your partner
4. Fill out the answer form based on the complaint form your partner gave you
Be creative and come up with different types of scenarios that could lead to
a civil lawsuit
PRE-TRIAL MOTIONS
 Before a trial begins the two parties may
move to try and get rid of the case
 There are two methods of doing this:
 Motion for Dismissal
 A motion for dismissal entails dismissing the case
on the several different grounds
 If a judge grants this motion then the case does not
go to trial and nothing happens
 Motion for Summary Judgement
 This can be used by both parties unlike a motion
for dismissal
 This motion can be filed when there is no dispute
of the facts
 Summary judgement should not be granted if
facts are disputed
DISCOVERY AND PRE-TRIAL
MOTIONS
Question: What do you think
sanctions mean? Take a look at
this picture and think again.  To prevent surprise at a trial the parties are
provided with the tools of discovery
 Discovery is basically a time period where
information is shared by both parties
 The premise of discovery is that each party
should be entitled to information held by the
other
 Failure to cooperate in discovery can cause
sanctions to be put on the party that does not
comply

If you said money amounts,

you're right!!!
DISCOVERY AND PRE-TRIAL
MOTIONS
 Tools of Discovery
 Oral Depositions
 In an oral deposition a witness is interviewed out of
court
 The party wishing to do so must notify the other
party so they can have the witness present for cross
examination
 Written Interrogatories
 Questions submitted to the parties that must be
answered under oath in writing
 Production of Documents
 A production of documents is a request for
documents held by the other party
 Mental/Physical Examination
 If the mental or physical condition of a party is at
stake a mental or physical examination is necessary
DISCOVERY AND PRE-TRIAL
CONFERENCE
 If a party does not comply with
discovery, the discovering party, may
request a court order to compel
compliance
 Discovery may begin after the filing of
the complaint, but usually commences
after the answer is filed
 In addition, a pre-trial conference may
be called by the judge to discuss issues
In discovery each side is in essence
of the case ‘scouting’ each other
DEBATE
Debate (Discussion); 2 min:
 In Discovery both sides are forced to give up documents and information to the other opposing
party
 Do you think this is fair, considering that the element of surprise is a key factor in winning a
case?
Do you disagree or agree with the rules of discovery?
THE CIVIL TRIAL
Question: What is a bench trial? How does it differ from a normal trial?
CIVIL TRIALS
 A trial is a legal procedure for parties who
have not been able to resolve their dispute
 In some situations both parties may agree to
a bench trial, or a trial by a judge
 A normal jury trial is guaranteed by the 7th
amendment
 The role of a judge in a trial is to oversee the
trial, selection of jury, admission of evidence,
due process requirements, and final
judgement
Can you think of any benefits of a
bench trial?
SELECTION OF THE JURY
 Jurors are selected from around the
community and are summoned to the
courthouse for jury duty
 Each potential juror is examined, using a
voir dire (“to speak the truth) examination
 The purpose of this examination is to
determine a juror’s qualifications, uncover
potential biases, and find ground for
challenge
 If one side suspects a juror might be biased
they may challenge to have them removed
OPENING STATEMENTS
 The trial begins with the plaintiff’s attorney
giving an opening statement
 This entails what the plaintiff intends to
prove
 In order to win the case the plaintiff must
prove the disputed allegations
 The defendant follows up, but does not have
to give an opening statement
 Witnesses and exhibits are both presented
 Exhibits are material evidence such as a
bloody knife or a sock
WITNESS EXAMINATION
 If witnesses do not want to testify voluntarily,
they will be forced to testify by subpoena
 The typical order in court is the plaintiff
presents their evidence first
 The defendant presents their evidence after
the plaintiff
 If necessary the plaintiff may introduce new
evidence to rebuttal the defendant
 Finally, the defendant may introduce new
evidence to rebuttal the plaintiff if and only
if new matters are raised by the plaintiff’s
argument
 WITNESS EXAMINATION
Leading questions suggest an  Both attorneys introduce witnesses and
answer to the person being asked
the question. question them, which is called direct-
examination
 They also both question the witnesses the
other attorney brings, which is called
“You’ve never seen this gun before, cross-examination
have you?”  During cross examination attorneys ask
leading questions, or questions that suggest
an answer
 Leading questions are permissible because
The witness is almost being told to they test the credibility of witnesses and are
say ‘no’. not permitted in direct examination
DEBATE
Debate (Discussion); 2 min:
 Leading questions have been used for a very long time and what many say are ‘crucial’ to
examining witnesses
 However, these questions are meant to purposely throw off a witness
 Even though a witness has to be credible, being examined in court is very stressful, and
witnesses may make a mistake
Do you disagree or agree with the use of leading questions?
 THE RULES OF
EVIDENCE AND
PROCEDURE
Question: Why are rules of evidence/procedure important to proceedings in court?
THE RULES OF EVIDENCE
 Since 1975 all federal courts have adopted a
standard set of rules called the Federal
Rules of Evidence (aka. FRE)
 Trial judges use these to control the
admission of evidence and when a judge
decision is appealed it is generally upheld
 In some situations when a judge has
determined that significant prejudice had
occurred the judge will declare a mistrial
RELEVANCE AND
MATERIALITY
 Evidence, no matter the type, must be only
Relevance be admitted if it relevant
Evidence that proves something in court
 That is the evidence must logically prove or
disprove some issue of the case
 Probative evidence tends to prove
Significant Probative Value something of importance to the case
Something of importance to the case  Relevant material that has significant
probative value is material
 Anything that is irrelevant or immaterial should
not be included in court
Material
Important as well as relevant to a case
COMPETENCY
 Evidence must be competent or legally
admissible
 To be competent witnesses must take an oath
to affirm they are telling the truth
 When special expertise is needed to solve a
factual dispute, the jury is not competent to
solve this, so the court calls an expert
witness
 Expert witnesses are people with special
training or knowledge
 Doctors are frequently called in personal injury
cases to testify as expert witnesses
THE BEST EVIDENCE RULE
 The best evidence rule states that unless,
original documents are unobtainable,
original documents should be used, rather
than copies
 Second hand copies are only admissible if
the loss of original documents is not the fault
of the party seeking to introduce them
THE HEARSAY EVIDENCE
RULE
 The hearsay evidence rule states that
witness testimony not based on their own
knowledge is not admissible
 This helps to exclude highly unreliable
evidence from being considered
 This rule also guarantees the opposing party a
chance to cross examine the person who said
the statement
 There are many exception to this rule, such as
the spontaneous declaration exception
 This permits evidence uttered simultaneously
with the occurrence of the act
COMMUNICATIVE
PRIVILEGES
 The general rule is that when someone
can give relevant information they
should testify
 However, there are certain privileges
that individuals are entitled to
 Where a privilege exists, the person
benefitted by the privilege (holder), is
entitled to refuse to testify or block a
person from testifying
COMMUNICATIVE
PRIVILEGES There is one more privilege that
 Communicative Privileges relates to the picture below
Can you guess it?
 Marital Testimonial Privilege
 The marital testimonial privilege permits one
spouse to not testify against the other in a criminal
case
 Marital Communications Privilege
 The marital communications privilege permits a
spouse from testifying about a conversation
between the two spouses
 Doctor-Patient Privilege
 The doctor-patient privilege stops doctors from
testifying about information used for treatment of
patient
 Attorney-Client Privilege
 The attorney client privilege stops attorneys from If you guessed right against self
testifying about conversations or work done for the
incrimination, you’re right!!!
client
ACTIVITY
Activity: Evaluating Objections
1. Have four people volunteer for the roles of judge, attorney 1, attorney 2, and witness
2. Read the script and be ready to perform the objections listed on the script
3. The rest of the members arrange the room into the a courtroom
4. Finally, before the attorney’s say their objections the rest of the club try to guess what the
objection will be
CIVIL TRIALS
CON’T.
Question: What is a judgement?
TRIAL MOTIONS
 If after the plaintiff has presented their case,
the defendant’s attorney may believe there is
not enough evidence to substantiate the
claims and may move for a motion for
nonsuit
 The judge will grant the motion if a reasonable
person could not find in favor of the plaintiff
 At the end of the presentation of evidence
either party may move for a directed verdict
 This is granted if there is not clear disputes
 The party who moves for the motion wins
JURY VERDICT
 At the end of the trial both parties may make
closing arguments
 The jury then goes off to deliberate the case
 Remember that jury deliberations are held in
total secrecy
 After that the jury returns with a verdict
POST-TRIAL MOTIONS
 If a party is not satisfied with the verdict they
could move for several motions
 A motion for judgement notwithstanding
the verdict (JNOV) is granted if a judge feels
a jury could not have ruled the way they
did considering the evidence
 A motion for mistrial could be granted for a
variety of reasons
 A motion for relief from judgement could
be granted if there is a clerical error in
judgement
DEBATE
Debate (Discussion); 2 min:
 Post-trial motions such as JNOV completely undermine the system of trial by jury that we
have today
 However, they are sometimes needed if the jury is prejudiced or biased

Do you disagree or agree with the use post-trial motions?

JUDGEMENT AND EXECUTION

 The trial concludes with the award of a

judgment decided by the judge
 This is usually a money amount, but can be
a variety of things
 Either party may still appeal for review to a
higher court if they are still not satisfied
 On appeal, the court would look at the law
applied in the case to see if it was applied
correctly