Litigation Lawyers in Brentwood

"Civil procedure" in Brentwood, Tennessee is a very broad term, and it refers to the wide variety of rules that control how civil litigation is conducted. It is to be distinguished from substantive law, which governs the rights that civil litigation is meant to vindicate.

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

The rules of civil procedure in Brentwood, Tennessee are sometimes convoluted. Because civil litigation is an inherently complicated process, the rules that govern how it proceeds can't be simple, either. They govern every step of the litigation process, from filing the initial complaint, all the way to the final appeals process.

Major Brentwood, Tennessee Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: Perhaps the most important part of filing a lawsuit in Brentwood, Tennessee is the complaint. The complaint is a document filed with a Brentwood, Tennessee court that lays out the plaintiff's (the person filing the suit) allegations against the defendant (the person being sued), as well as the relief that the plaintiff is seeking from the court.

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: Once both sides have fired their opening volleys in the form of the complaint and answer, the next process in civil litigation in Brentwood, Tennessee 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: it's really very uncommon for lawsuits to go trial in Brentwood, Tennessee, because the rules of civil procedure in Brentwood, and nearly everywhere else, encourage speedy resolution of legal disputes, before they ever see the inside of a courtroom. This is largely accomplished by judges dismissing cases that clearly have no merit, or the parties settling out of court. However, when neither of these things is possible, both sides of the lawsuit will have to hash it out in a trial, which can be the most stressful and expensive step in the process. It involves both sides of the case presenting their evidence and arguments to a jury and judge, and letting them decide the issues.

How Can a Brentwood, Tennessee Lawyer Help?

If you are dealing with a lawsuit in Brentwood, Tennessee, it's almost certain that you will have to deal with issues concerning civil procedure.

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