From BluWiki

Case starts

Case starts with a compalint filed by plaintiff with the trial court

Note, this must be filed before the statute of limitations is up

Complaint (I, III)

• This compalaint must contain:
  • Plaintiff's alleged facts (FACET I)
  • Plaintiff's demand for a rememdy (FACET II)

Three posibilities

Default

• Default - default judgment

Motion to dismiss

• Defendant's motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim
  • Judge makes a legal decision to Sustain or deny. (see below)

How a motion to dismiss works

• Complaint
• Motion to dismiss complaint (BEFORE trial)
  • Denied (complaint is vaild - trial goes on)
  • Sustained (Dismissed at trial ??)
    • Appeal to supreme court
      • US Supreme Ct. upholds decision to sustain motion
      • US Supreme Ct denies appeal - trial now goes on

Defendent's answer (Can be facet I or II)

• Denial
• Allege new facts to invalidadate prima facie case (facet I - what plaintif is proving is not true)
• Allege new fact to constitute an affirmative defense (facet II)
  • Here you admit everything in complaint, but you give new facts that constitute an affirmative defense
    • Self-defense (I admit I shot him, he was coming at me with a knife)
    • Res-judicata
    • Statute of limitations

Case tried

Outline of trial process

• IF complaint is not dismissed, go to trial:
• 1. Discovery
• 2. Summary Judgement
• 3. Trier of fact
  • Judge
  • Jury (if any party wants a jury, everyone gets one)
• 4. Opening statemetns (think of it as a story - most important part of the case, if you don't ahve an opening statement, you're gonna loose)
  • Plaintiff first
  • defendent next
• 5. Plaintiff's case in chief
  • This corresponds exactly to the complaint
• 6. Almost always: defendant's motion for directed verdict of dismissal
  • If sustained - case is dismissed at rial, "taking the case away from the jury"
    • This occurs when pliantiffs case is so bad, there is no way plaintiff could win
    • This is to prevent jury form making "stupid" or "emotional" decisions
  • If denied, proceed to next part of case, "getting to the jury"
• 7. Defendant's case in chief
  • This corresponds exactly to the answer

Jury verdict

• VERDICT IS BEGINNING, NOT END OF JUDGEMENT
• Jury verdict (most think case ends here)
• E.G. $115 Million
  • Judgment in conformity with the verdict
    • E.G. $115 Million
  • Judment notwithstanding the verdict (JUDGE THROWS OUT JURY VERDICT)
    • E.G. $15 Million (knocked down by the Judge)

• This is one of the three ways that Jury verdict is thrown out.
  • Cap on punative? damage
  • Constitution (BMW case - free speech, I think?)
  • Judgment on verdict

Case can then go to appeal

• Judgment can be thrown out (or it can increase) on appeal.
• What you're learning, is until it's Res Judicata, you don't know the outcome.

Outline of the case