Litigation Lawyers in Harper Woods

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

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

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

Major Harper Woods, Michigan Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: The first, and perhaps most important, part of filing a lawsuit in Harper Woods, Michigan is the complaint. The complaint is filed with the court in Harper Woods, 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). Normally, 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 normally the first document that the defendant files, and it is meant to serve as a direct response to the plaintiff's complaint. It normally denies all of the plaintiff's major allegations. It might also lay out affirmative defenses. An "affirmative defense" is a set of circumstances 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 proven, it would negate, or mitigate, his liability to the plaintiff.

Discovery: The civil procedure rules in Harper Woods, Michigan were written with the purpose of, among other things, avoiding surprises. For that reason, everyone immersed in a lawsuit goes into trial with a pretty good idea of what evidence the other side has. This is largely because of the discovery process, during which the attorneys for both sides are required to disclose (with some exemptions) all information relevant to the trial which they have in their possession. These disclosures come in multiple forms, such as simply sending boxes of documents, deposing witnesses, or submitting written questions to the other side, which the recipient is obligated to answer under oath.

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

How Can a Harper Woods, Michigan Lawyer Help?

If you are facing a legal issue of any kind in Harper Woods, Michigan, you are going to face civil procedure issues.

Because the rules of civil procedure in Harper Woods, Michigan are complicated, it's smart to have the counsel of an accomplished attorney through every step of the process.