Steps in a civil trial

Plaintiff: opening statement in which plaintiff's attorney explains to the judge or jury (the trier of facts) the evidence to be presented as proof of the allegations in the complaint.

Defense: opening statement in which the defendant s attorney explains the evidence to be presented to deny the allegations made by the plaintiff.

Plaintiff: direct examination of each plaintiff witness. Presentation of evidence in favor of the plaintiff.

Defense: cross examination of each plaintiff witness. Questioning of witness to break down his or her story or to discredit the witness in the eyes of the jury.

Defense: motion for dismissal the defense asks the court to view all of the evidence to determine whether there is sufficient legal evidence to submit the case to the jury. If after weighing all the evidence, the elements of the plaintiff s complaint have not been met, the defense requests that the case be dismissed.

Defense: direct examination of each defense witness.

Plaintiff: cross examination of each defense witness.

Plaintiff: closing statement in which attorney reviews all of the evidence presented, noting uncontradicted facts, and how the evidence has satisfied the elements of the complaint. The attorney asks for a finding for the plaintiff.

Defense: closing statement like that of plaintiff. Attorney asks for a finding for the defendant.

Judge: instructions to the jury-what the law is and the evidence to be applied to the law.

Judge or jury: decision. In most states, a unanimous decision is required or a hung jury results. In such a situation, the case may be tried again with a new jury.

Prosecutor: opening statement in which the prosecutor explains to the judge and jury the evidence to be presented as proof of the allegations in the indictment.

Defense: opening statement in which the defendant s attorney explains the evidence to be presented to deny the allegations made by the prosecutor.

Prosecutor: direct examination of each prosecution witness. Presentation of evidence in favor of the prosecution.

Defense: cross examination of each prcbecution witness. Questioning of each witness to break down his or her story or to discredit the witness in the eyes of the jury.

Defense: motion for directed verdict. The defense asks the court to view all of the evidence to determine whether there is sufficient legal evidence to submit the case to the jury. If after weighing all the evidence, the elements of the prosecutor s indictment have not been met, the defense requests that a directed verdict be entered.

Defense: direct examination of each defense witness.

Prosecution: cross examination of each defense witness

Prosecution: closing statement in which attorney reviews all of the evidence presented, noting uncontradicted facts and how the evidence has satisfied the elements of the charge. The prosecutor asks for a finding of guilty.

Defense: closing statement like that of the prosecution. Attorney asks for a finding of not guilty.

Judge: instructions to the jury-what the law is and the evidence to be applied to the law.

Judge or jury: decision. In most states. A unanimous decision is required or a hung jury results. In such a situation, the case may be tried again with a new jury.

The american legal system is based on the english common law system. Early settlers to this country brought with them the court system of england and modified it over time.

Common law originated in england when disputes were decided on the basis of established customs. If a particular case could not be decided in this way, the judge would decide it based on his individual idea of right and wrong. This became known as the law of precedent and the doctrine of stare decisis. Stare decisis" is a latin term meaning "to stand by decisions" and its effect is that a decision of the highest court has the force of law and must be followed in future cases unless the court itself changes its decision in a later case.

The four basic sources of law in the united states include the constitution of the united states and the individual states, case law, statutes, and regulations written by agencies.

The constitution of the united states consists of a preamble, seven articles and 26 amendments. The first ten amendments are known as the bill of rights and guarantee such rights as freedom of speech, press and worship. Most state constitutions are patterned after the federal one. Case law consists of court decisions made in various state and federal courts. They are generally divided into three categories:

1. interpretations of the constitution of the united states and the respective state constitutions;
2. interpretations of statutes, and
3. court decisions based on british and american precedents involving matters in which no apparent constitutional or statutory law applies.

Statutes are laws enacted by the congress of the United States or by state legislatures. The statutes of the United States are contained in the united states code, which is arranged by numbers and titles. State statutes are laws passed by state legislatures. They too may be organized into codes. The exact code titles may vary from one jurisdiction to another. In California, for example, they are called California codes. And in Missouri, they are called Missouri revised statutes. Laws passed by cities are call municipal ordinances. They are usually passed by the city s governing council and approved by the mayor.

As with the other sources of law. - regulations written by administrative agencies may be either federal, state or citywide in scope. In addition to being classified by jurisdiction, law may be classified according to the parties involved or the nature of the law.

Classification based on parties involved organizes law into public and private law. Public law includes all forms of the law to which the general public is subject. Some examples - are constitutional law, criminal law, maritime law, and municipal law. Any individual or business organization subject to the jurisdiction of the law of the country is subject to public law.

Private law generally applies only to individuals who subject themselves to a specific type of law because of their actions in private transactions. In most respects. Every field of private law is either a refinement or subdivision of the law contracts. Included therefore under the general heading of private law are the law of sales, law of negotiable instruments, law of agency, partnership law, corporation law, property law and the many other subdivisions of the general classification of business law.

Classification based on the nature of the 1aw organizes law into substantive and adjective or procedural categories. Substantive law states the rights and obligations of individuals. It is the law as stated in the statutes of the united states government or the various state legislatures. Substantive law states the law or laws that govern a particular topic.

Adjective law deals with legal procedure rather than stating the law. It outlines and describes the procedures that must be followed in applying the substantive law.

The united states court system is like a pyramid with the u.s. supreme court at its peak and the federal and state court systems composing the two sides. Federal courts are divided into areas called circuits; each contains a u.s. circuit court of appeals, which hears appeal cases only, and u.s. district courts, which serve as trial courts in the federal system.

The trial court is where a case is first heard and a judge or jury decides it.

Most civil cases are filed in local trial courts. These may be referred to as state, municipal, county or superior courts, but these courts may also be subdivided to handle specific kinds of cases:

Small claims court: all cases involving less than a certain amount of money, e.g., $200, $500, $1,000 depending on the jurisdiction.

Landlord tenant court: actions by a landlord to force a tenant to move out of a house or apartment may be heard in a court created for this express purpose.

Family or domestic relations court includes actions involving separation, divorce and custody of children. Also includes family disputes and juvenile cases, although cases involving juveniles often are heard in a special juvenile court.

Traffic court: actions involving violations while driving automobiles.

Criminal court: actions involving violations of the law for which a person could be put in jail, the criminal court in turn may be divided into felony and misdemeanor branches.