Litigation Lawyers in Hazard

"Civil procedure" refers to the wide variety of rules that govern the process of civil litigation in Hazard, Kentucky. It does not deal with the substantive rights that the litigation system is meant to protect, just the process by which it protects them.

The civil procedure rules in Hazard, Kentucky are designed around a few simple goals for the civil litigation system: efficiency, accessibility, cost-effectiveness, and, most importantly, fairness.

In Hazard, Kentucky, civil litigation is often extremely intricate. So, it shouldn't be a surprise that the rules of civil procedure can also be fairly confusing. After all, they govern everything from the first document filed by the plaintiff, to the last ruling issued by an appeals court.

Major Hazard, Kentucky Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: The first, and perhaps most important, part of filing a lawsuit in Hazard, Kentucky is the complaint. The complaint is filed with the court in Hazard, Kentucky that's responsible for handling civil trials. It lists everything that the plaintiff (the person who is suing) alleges against the defendant (the person the plaintiff is suing). Typically, but not always, the end of the complaint will contain a "prayer for relief." The prayer for relief is simply a statement of what the plaintiff is asking the court to do to remedy the harm that the defendant allegedly caused.

Answer: The answer is a document filed by the defendant, in response to a complaint. The answer typically contains a few things: normally, it denies most of the allegations made by the plaintiff. If it does not deny the factual assertions in the complaint, it will typically raise legal defenses, known as affirmative defenses, arguing that even if everything the plaintiff alleges is true, the defendant should not be held liable, because of extenuating circumstances.

Discovery: Once both sides have fired their opening volleys in the form of the complaint and answer, the next process in civil litigation in Hazard, Kentucky is discovery. Under the civil procedure rules of most jurisdictions in the U.S., each side of a lawsuit is required by law to disclose relevant information to the other side. These disclosures come in the form of depositions, the production of documents, and answers to written questions submitted by opposing counsel.

Trial: Although the trial is arguably the most dramatic element of civil procedure in Hazard, Kentucky, it is truly extremely rare for civil lawsuits to make it this far. Civil procedure in Hazard is designed to encourage early settlement of cases, or dismissal of cases that don't have any legal or factual merit. However, in the rare cases when the case is not dismissed, and the parties can't reach a settlement, the matter will go to trial. A trial is the most visible aspect of civil litigation, and it is the stage when all of the legal and factual questions raised by both parties are resolved by a judge and jury, respectively.

How Can a Hazard, Kentucky Lawyer Help?

If you're suing someone, or are being sued, in Hazard, Kentucky, dealing with issues of civil procedure is going to be a fact of life for quite some time.

In Hazard, Kentucky, procedural pitfalls can derail an otherwise-valid case. They can also be some of the most obtuse and convoluted issues in the whole case. Consequently, you should not go into something like this without the counsel of an attorney.