Full Answer
An attorney can not only answer any questions you may have about the scope of an attorney's obligations to their client, they can also answer other questions you may have about the law.
Defendants who have not secured counsel may ask for a postponement to give them time to hire a lawyer. These requests are usually granted, but not indefinitely.
If the Defendant Answers. Once an Answer is filed, the litigation process starts, and typically moves to either the Motion Phase or the Discovery Phase, or both. We will discuss these in the next sections.
You will likely turn to your lawyer to ask him if you have to answer such a strange questions. "Have you ever been convicted before," is one common question that comes up. "Have you ever brought a lawsuit before," is another. "Do you own your home where you now live?" is yet another. "Do you have life insurance?"
find for (someone or something) To declare that someone or something is innocent, as in a courtroom. The jury found for the plaintiff, and the defendant had to pay a hefty fine.
The defendant in a lawsuit is the person against whom the action is brought, by the plaintiff. A defendant in an arbitration case or a divorce case is called the "respondent." U.S. Law has two kinds of court cases which involve defendants: Criminal cases, which involve a defendant who is accused of a crime.
In a civil matter, the party sued by the plaintiff; in a criminal matter, the party who is prosecuted.
Whether dealing with criminal or civil cases, a Defense Attorney is an advocate for the accused, responsible for protecting their client's interests. When individuals or corporations are brought before a court as the defendant, they are at risk of having a judgment made against them.
Accused persons are entitled to hear all of the evidence, and you will not have to leave the courtroom when other witnesses testify even if you intend to be a witness yourself. However, you must not tell any witnesses what evidence was given in the courtroom or the questions that were asked.
defendant - In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
Victim: an individual who has suffered direct physical, emotional, or economic harm as a result of the commission of a crime. Defendant: the person accused of committing a crime.
The definition of a defendant is a person being sued or accused of a crime. An example of a defendant is someone accused of driving under the influence. The party against which an action is brought. In a criminal trial, the accused; in a civil proceeding, the person or entity against whom a claim is made.
Counsel Tables Typically, the Plaintiff's table is on the right side, and the Defendant's table is on the left side. However, the Plaintiff's side has the right to sit closest to the jury box.
Whether he deals with criminal or civil cases, a defense attorney is an advocate for the accused, charged with protecting his client's interests and making sure the law works as it should.
Draft, file and argue motions to dismiss or motions to suppress. Advocate for the accused at trial. Cross examine prosecution witnesses. Interview and select jury.
There are four types evidence by which facts can be proven or disproven at trial which include:Real evidence;Demonstrative evidence;Documentary evidence; and.Testimonial evidence.
When defendants are arrested, they must be brought before a judge within a specified period of time. This appearance is known as an arraignment or...
You should not assume that an appointed lawyer will be less capable than a private attorney you pay. Appointed counsel may perform as well as, or e...
If, at any point during your case, you are dissatisfied with your appointed counsel and come up with the funds (perhaps from family or friends) to...
1. Can you help me complete my financial statement for the court? 2. What other resources can you, or the court, provide for my defense? 3. If I ge...
How a Lawyer Gets Appointed. When defendants are arrested, they must be brought before a judge within a specified period of time. This appearance is known as an arraignment or initial appearance. At that time, a judge will ask defendants if they can afford an attorney.
Appointed lawyers come from either a public defender’s office or from a panel of local private attorneys approved by the court. Do not assume that an appointed lawyer will be less capable than a private attorney you pay. Appointed counsel may perform as well as, or even better than, a private attorney.
If, on the other hand, a conflict of interest arises that could compromise your lawyer’s ability to represent you, your appointed counsel has a duty to present this conflict to the judge. For example, if the prosecutor includes a former client of your lawyer on its potential witness list, your lawyer would be caught between their duty of loyalty to the former client and their duty to zealously represent you, which could include cross-examining the former client. Your lawyer would have to explain this conflict to the judge. In these circumstances, courts readily give new counsel additional time to prepare your case.
If you're unhappy with appointed counsel but don’t have the means to hire a private attorney, you can request a different attorney. But, in general, this option should be a last resort when you cannot resolve your disagreements. Learn more in Before You Fire Your Court-Appointed Lawyer or Public Defender.
Public defenders are a type of court-appointed counsel. The terms are used interchangeably a lot. (This article is no exception.) Both are paid with public funds but their working arrangements differ.
If you're detained in jail while awaiting trial, don't discuss your case with fellow detainees. They might provide your information to law enforcement to help themselves.
If the court appointed a private attorney from its panel, it may assign a lawyer from a list of attorneys on duty that day for court appointments. For more on how the process works once an attorney is appointed, see Working with a Public Defender or Court-Appointed Attorney.
The plaintiff initially decides where to bring the suit, but in some cases, the defendant can seek to change the court. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases. A federal court in one state, for example, can usually only decide a case that arose from actions in that state.
To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal.". Both the plaintiff and the defendant can appeal, and the party doing so is called the appellant. Appeals can be made for a variety of reasons including improper procedure and asking the court to change its interpretation of the law.
Federal criminal juries consist of 12 persons. Federal civil juries consist of six persons. plaintiff - The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit. plea - In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges in open court.
bail - Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
A. acquittal - Judgment that a criminal defendant has not been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. affidavit - A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it. Affidavits must be notarized or administered by an officer of the court with such authority.
appellate - About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgment of another lower court or tribunal. arraignment - A proceeding in which an individual who is accused of committing a crime is brought into court, told of the charges, and asked to plead guilty or not guilty.
charge to the jury - The judge's instructions to the jury concerning the law that applies to the facts of the case on trial. chief judge - The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court. The chief judge also decides cases, and the choice of chief judges is determined by seniority.
The first strong defensive strategy is to be keenly aware of the philosophy of your side of the case. For example, if you are a plaintiff in a personal injury case or a personal injury lawyer, you may want to get to the end of the case in which you discuss damages and how the accident affected the victim. As you know, the more that the personal injury lawyer spends on the case, the less he or she will actually make if there is recovery. If you are the defendant or the defendant’s lawyer, you likely want to slow the case down so that you can gain leverage by making the case drag out. If you slow the case down, the other side may become desperate to settle for less than the case is actually worth. Personal injury lawyers are aware of this tactic and often offer to represent the client on a contingency fee basis so that the client does not have to come up with sizable funds to support the litigation strategy.
This can aggravate the plaintiff because he or she will likely have to pay for service to be perfected multiple times or may have to try another form of service of process. If the defendant makes an argument against valid service, the entire case may have to start again, costing the plaintiff more time and money. While there are other ways besides personal service to execute valid service, a judge may side with a defendant if the proper steps were not followed. Therefore, it is important that service is properly executed to avoid this problem.
A good litigator can easily derail a case even before a trial starts by using some procedural checks. Here are some of the most common tricks lawyers play in civil litigation and how you can fight back.
Another trick that litigators play is to retain all of the potential experts as consultants if the field is very limited. This can help prevent the other side from being able to find a qualified expert to represent their client’s interests.
A good litigator can easily derail a case even before a trial starts by using some procedural checks. Here are some of the most common tricks lawyers play in civil litigation and how you can fight back.
If the defense lawyer does something inappropriate or has not provided us with information that the court has directed, we have a legal opportunity to ask the court to do something drastic.
The complaint makes general allegations of wrongdoing against the person you have sued. Those papers must be delivered to the person you are suing. That person, through their lawyer, has an opportunity to respond to the allegations. That is known as an 'answer'. These documents, known as a summons and complaint, as well as an answer, ...
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A motion to strike means that we are asking the court to throw out the answer that was submitted by the defense lawyer. When a lawsuit is started, we are obligated to file papers known as a 'summons and complaint'.
In the legal field, however, one of the legal duties every lawyer must observe is to avoid conflicts of interest when it comes to their clients. In fact, if a lawyer represents a client knowing that there's a conflict of interest, they can be disciplined by the state bar and sued by the client for legal malpractice.
There are a variety of conflicts of interest that can prevent a lawyer from taking on a particular case. The conflict may occur between the prospective client and one of the attorney's current or former clients. There can also be concerns if a client's interests are in conflict with the lawyer's professional or personal relationships.
While an attorney may be able to easily identify a conflict, sometimes they're not always easy to spot. Because of this, it's the attorney's responsibility to perform regular conflict checks when taking on a new client.
An attorney can not only answer any questions you may have about the scope of an attorney's obligations to their client, they can also answer other questions you may have about the law.
It's also important to note that a law firm may be able to represent a client even though a single attorney had a conflict of interest, if a "firewall" can be successfully put around the attorney with the conflict. This essentially means that the matter would not be discussed with or around the attorney with the conflict, ...
It's also possible for there to be an issue if the potential client's interests are at odds with the attorney's own interests. A conflict of interest can also occur at the law firm level. For example, even if an attorney working at a law firm didn't personally work on a particular matter (because someone else at the firm handled it), ...
The lawyer believes they can provide " competent and diligent " representation to all affected clients; The representation isn't illegal in any way; The lawyer isn't representing two clients against each other in the same lawsuit; and. Each affected client provides informed consent in writing.
Questions for Your Attorney 1 I’ve waived time and need more time to prepare my case. What do I have to tell the judge to get the trial date pushed back? 2 If the prosecutor asks for a continuance and gets it, can I challenge the delay by filing a writ in the appellate court? 3 I’d like to hire new counsel because I think the one I have is not doing a good job. What do I have to tell the judge to get time for finding a new lawyer?
When they’ve denied a motion by the defense or prosecutor, do either have recourse?
Occasionally, defendants will ask for a continuance on the grounds of prejudicial publicity. Whether that motion will be granted depends on the facts of each case. Typically, judges will inquire as to how widespread and negative the publicity actually is; whether a change of venue (to another location within the court system) will solve the problem; whether questioning potential jurors about their exposure will result in a taint-free jury; and whether admonishing the jury to disregard such publicity, or even sequestering them, will alleviate the effects. Often, the effect of pretrial publicity can be mitigated using one or more of these approaches.
To prepare for trial. States typically provide defendants with a minimum amount of time between entering the plea and going to trial. But a defendant has a right to adequately prepare defense (which includes the right of counsel to prepare).
Similarly, defendants who are without counsel but facing a preliminary hearing are often given a continuance to hire a lawyer (a preliminary hearing is a “mini-trial,” in which the prosecutor presents enough evidence to convince the judge that “there’s a case here,” and that the matter should be set for trial).
Asking for a continuance on the grounds that the prosecutor is not prepared is typically a non-starter.
The reasons for this approach begin with the wish to subject incarcerated pretrial defendants to as little time behind bars as possible. In addition, making defendants wait may expose them to the loss of witnesses, physical evidence, and witnesses ’ memories. Dragging out a criminal case is particularly difficult for victims. On the flip side, allowing defendants to unnecessarily prolong the proceedings, in hopes that damning evidence will become unavailable, is not in the public’s interest of conducting fair trials.
Tell the Truth. If your lawyer doubts you in the consultation, or doesn't think you have a case, while that may change over time, getting over an initial disbelief is very hard. You have to prove your case. Your attorney is not your witness. They are your advocate - but you are responsible for coming up with proof.
Most people hired attorneys because they don't want to sit in court. Well, truth be told, neither do I. The difference between lawyer and client is that the lawyer expects it to take a long time and understands. The client typically thinks it's unjustified. So, your hard truth is that each case takes time. Be patient.
It's expensive because we have to wait in line too. Going to court is more than dressing up in a fancy suit and knowing what papers to fill out. Attorneys have to wait in line just like the "regular folk" and we are at the mercy of the court staff just like everyone else. If you get a bill that includes time spent waiting in court, it's not usually exaggerated. While some people may stretch the truth - if you want to see whether I had to wait an hour for the case to get called, then just come with me to court. Some courtrooms have more than 50 cases on the call. Your case may not be first or even ninth. I have been number 210 on the list before. It takes time. Most people hired attorneys because they don't want to sit in court. Well, truth be told, neither do I. The difference between lawyer and client is that the lawyer expects it to take a long time and understands. The client typically thinks it's unjustified. So, your hard truth is that each case takes time. Be patient.
Credibility is one of the most important things in this world - and most important in a courtroom. If you care enough only to wear sweats to the courthouse, then the judge will see that you don't care, and that will be reflected in their desire to help you, listen to you, and decide in your favor. Step it up.
If the judge can see your boobs, he's not listening to your story. If I can see your boobs, then I know you didn't care enough about yourself to talk to an attorney. Dress like you are going to church. Credibility is one of the most important things in this world - and most important in a courtroom.
If you don't pay your lawyer on the day of trial, or however you have agreed to, then while he or she may be obligated by other ethical duties to do his/her best, they won't be motivated by sympathy for you, and it will show in court.
If no one can confirm that the story is true, you will at least need something external, such as a hard copy document, to prove your case. Be prepared.
The defense lawyer must have a good faith basis to ask the question.
When you bring a lawsuit the defense lawyer has a chance to ask you questions.
That booklet is called a transcript. That's your deposition transcript. In legal circles a deposition is also known as an examination before trial. When you bring a lawsuit, you put your medical condition in issue.
Medical malpractice law is a fascinating area of law. It is technical. It is highly specialized and requires a great deal of knowledge of medicine as well as a high degree of trial skill. In this lecture, which was designed to teach lawyers who practice in other areas of law, what they need to know about medical malpractice law in New York. Lawyers across the country
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That means the defense is entitled to learn about you and your injury. They do this through a process called 'discovery'. What a trend-setting name. Discovery allows the defense lawyer to get copies of your medical records.
Not true. Every client talks to their attorney. Every client must be prepared for their deposition. The defense lawyer is just fishing for information. He's throwing his line into the water, not knowing what, if anything, he'll catch.