Litigation Lawyers in Gladstone

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

Gladstone, Michigan's government strives to make the civil justice system fair, efficient, and accessible. The rules of civil procedure are designed to advocate those goals, to the greatest extent possible.

Gladstone, Michigan's civil procedure rules can get pretty confusing, however. They regulate every aspect of a civil action, from the filing of the complaint, to discovery, and all the way through trial and appeals.

Major Gladstone, Michigan Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: The initial, and perhaps most significant, part of filing a lawsuit in Gladstone, Michigan is the complaint. The complaint is filed with the court in Gladstone, Michigan 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 just 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 typically the first document that the defendant files, and it is meant to serve as a direct response to the plaintiff's complaint. It typically denies all of the plaintiff's major allegations. It might also lay out affirmative defenses. An "affirmative defense" is a set of reasons that negate the defendant's liability even if their conduct would ordinarily be unlawful. For example, in a lawsuit for battery, a defendant might admit that he struck the plaintiff, but claim that he acted in self-defense. If that can be shown, it would negate, or mitigate, his liability to the plaintiff.

Discovery: Once the complaint and answer have been filed in a Gladstone, Michigan court, the next major civil procedure issue comes up. Discovery is the procedure in which both sides of the lawsuit are obligated to disclose obligated evidence to one another. The lawyers for each side can submit written questions, which the other party is required to answer under oath, unless the information is privileged. Each side can also request any relevant documents, physical evidence, and can conduct depositions of witnesses and parties to the lawsuit.

Trial: It's quite rare for lawsuits in Gladstone, Michigan to go to trial. Gladstone's civil procedure rules truly discourage trials, and alternatively have designed the system so that it's almost always more cost-effective to settle out of court. Nonetheless, if this is not possible, the matter will go to trial, where a judge and/or jury will decide the factual questions, and then award the appropriate relief (if any) to the prevailing party.

How Can a Gladstone, Michigan Lawyer Help?

If you're facing a lawsuit in Gladstone, Michigan whether as the plaintiff or defendant, you will have to interact with your jurisdiction's civil procedure rules.

Civil Procedure in Gladstone, Michigan can be pretty confusing. It's always a good idea to have a lawyer who can advise you on how best to deal with these civil procedure issues.