Litigation Lawyers in Riverton

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

Riverton, Utah'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.

Civil litigation, however, is inherently complex. So, there is no getting around the fact that the civil procedure rules in Riverton, Utah are also going to be somewhat complicated and obtuse (or at least parts of them are). Remember, these rules govern every single thing that happens in a civil lawsuit, from the first complaint, to the last appeal.

Major Riverton, Utah Civil Procedure Issues

Complaint: The complaint is probably the most important document that the plaintiff will file in a Riverton, Utah lawsuit, and it is usually the first. The complaint contains all of the plaintiff's allegations against the defendant, as well as the relief that the plaintiff is asking the court to provide. Therefore, it can frame the tone, as well as the legal and factual issues, that will dominate the rest of the case.

Answer: After the plaintiff files the complaint, the defendant has to act. While they have a few options 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. Sometimes, 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: Once the complaint and answer have been filed in a Riverton, Utah court, the next major civil procedure issue comes up. Discovery is the process in which both sides of the lawsuit are required to disclose required 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: Although the trial is arguably the most dramatic element of civil procedure in Riverton, Utah, it is actually extremely rare for civil lawsuits to make it this far. Civil procedure in Riverton 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 Riverton, Utah Lawyer Help?

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

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