Litigation Lawyers in Hewitt

"Civil procedure" in Hewitt, Texas is a very broad term, and it refers to the wide variety of rules that regulate how civil litigation is done. It is to be distinguished from substantive law, which controls the rights that civil litigation is meant to vindicate.

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

Hewitt, Texas's civil procedure rules can get pretty perplexing, however. They govern every aspect of a civil action, from the filing of the complaint, to discovery, and all the way through trial and appeals.

Major Hewitt, Texas Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: The initial, and perhaps most significant, part of filing a lawsuit in Hewitt, Texas is the complaint. The complaint is filed with the court in Hewitt, Texas 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). Usually, 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: After the plaintiff files the complaint, the defendant has to act. While they have a few avenues at this stage of the game, most defendants elect to file an answer. The answer is the defendant's first direct response to the plaintiff's allegations. Occasionally, the answer contains a general denial, in which the defendant simply denies everything the plaintiff alleges. It might also contain a point-by-point addressing of every allegation the plaintiff makes, denying some, and admitting some.

Discovery: After the complaint has been filed in the Hewitt, Texas court of competent jurisdiction, the next important phase is the discovery process. In a civil lawsuit, there are not supposed to be any surprises (so the dramatic moments you see in TV trials are largely fiction). This predictability largely comes from the discovery process. Each side of the lawsuit has to disclose information relevant to the lawsuit to the other. This information can be obtained by sending the other side written questions, which must be answered under oath, demanding access to documents, and deposing witnesses.

Trial: Although the trial is arguably the most dramatic element of civil procedure in Hewitt, Texas, it is actually very rare for civil lawsuits to make it this far. Civil procedure in Hewitt is designed to encourage early settlement of cases, or dismissal of cases that don't have any legal or factual merit. Nonetheless, 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 Hewitt, Texas Lawyer Help?

If you're facing any significant legal issue in Hewitt, Texas, you can be pretty much sure that you'll face at least a few procedural complications that can hold up the process.

It should go without saying that you should have a Hewitt, Texas attorney on hand to deal with any civil procedure issues that you're almost sure to face, if you're involved in a lawsuit.