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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 25 general entries.
Special Topics
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 U.S. Law
Negligence, intentional acts and breach of contract. A tort action is a "civil wrong" such as negligence, battery, assault, defamation, false imprisonment or fraud. A breach of contract action begins when a party to a private agreement believes that one of the other parties has not fullfilled its obligations. Other types of a civil actions include divorce, probating of a will, restraining orders and requests for specific performance of a promise.
File a Complaint with the court. The person who institutes the action is called the plaintiff or petitioner. The lawsuit is begun by filing with the appropriate court the complaint or petition which lays out the theory of the case, what facts support that theory and what remedy is requested. The person filing the lawsuit has to pay a filing fee to the court.
Service of the lawsuit on the person being sued. There are many ways to "serve" the pleadings on the person(s) being sued. That person is called a defendant or respondent. Service can be accomplished by personally handing the papers to the defendant, by mail or by publishing in a newspaper of general circulation.
Enter the "default" of the defendant. If, after proof of proper service to the court's satisfaction, the plaintiff may ask the court to enter defendant's "default". Generally, this means that the plaintiff may proceed without furthur notifying the person being sued. The plaintiff may, subject to proof satisfactory to the court, secure a "default judgment" against the defendant and then proceed to enforce the judgment.
Discovery. Discovery is the process of securing evidence. This phase of a lawsuit takes the longest, generally 6 months or more. Discovery may be had by written questions, written requests for admissions, written requests for documents or other tangible things, subpoenas to third parties, depositions (examination under oath) and physical or mental examinations.
An examination of a witness under oath. Depositions are very important means of getting evidence. A party or witness is required to take an oath under penalty of perjury and then answer questions pertaining to the lawsuit. Failure to appear or answer questions can result in a finding of contempt by the court and may result in fines, evidentiary sanctions or imprisonment. The person being asked questions has a right to be respresented by an attorney and that attorney may make appropriate objections.
subpoena. A subpoena is issued by the court (or sometimes through the authority of an attorney) to non-parties for relevant documents, for inspections of places and for things (such as a tire). If the person being subpoened thinks that the subpoena is improper, they may ask the court to "quash" the subpoena which would mean that the subpoena does not have to be complied with.
The process of picking a jury. "Voire dire" is literally "to speak the truth". It is the process of selecting a jury to hear a case at trial. The jury is picked from the panel by the attorneys by asking questions of each prospective juror, reading questionaires filled out by the prospective jurors and watching the body language of each prospective juror. Both sides may disqualify a person to be on the jury for "cause". "Cause" could be identified bias and conflicts of interest. Both sides also get a limited number of "preemptory" challenges. These preemptory challenges may disqualify jurors for no identified reason.
No. The jury's role is as a fact finder. The right to a jury in a civil action is guaranteed by the 7th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The parties may agree to not seat a jury and to let the judge act as a fact finder. This called a "bench trial".
To give an overview of the upcoming evidence. The opening statements are not supposed to be argument. They are, however, an opportunity for the lawyers to speak directly with the jury and let them know what that lawyer thinks the evidence will show. It is a preview or roadmap for the jury to follow.
No. The role of a trial attorney is not to provide evidence or testimony by him or herself. They do provide evidence to the jury through other persons called witnesses who take the stand and testify. Documents are also introduced through witnesses. During a bench trial, some limited testimony may be given by an attorney. In addition, in a jury trial, the attorneys may have certain facts given to the jury without other proof if agreed to by both sides. I hear that in Texas, when a party is authorized to receive attorney's fees as part of damages, the lawyer may testify to the amount.
cross-examination . Cross examination is where a lawyer gets to ask questions after the witness is directly examined by the party who called that witness. Unlike direct examination, the questions can be pointed and leading. a leading question is one that suggests the answer. Many times under cross examination, the truth comes out and the witnesses prepared testimony falls apart.
Impeachment. Impeachment may be shown by contradictory evidence, through proof that the witness had been convicted of a crime or through saying something different on the stand than what they said under oath in a deposition taken before trial. This is a very powerful technique as the lawyer may then argue to the jury that the person is to be distrusted in all of his or her testimony.
No. In a perfect world they would! After a money judgment is rendered, several things may happen; the judgment is paid, the judgment is appealed, the judgment is compromised in settlement or the owner of the judgment proceeds to collect the judgment though involuntary means. In addition, most money judgments are dischargable in bankruptcy which means that the judgment may never be paid. It is also possible that the judgment is never collected because the Defendant does not have the means to pay or the Defendant dies or disappears. It is a rule of thumb for a good attorney when evaluating a case at the beginning to determine if successful is it worth proceeding based on a determination of whether any judgment would ever be paid.
| What is the name of the agency that works to develop and enforce regulations that implement environmental laws enacted by Congress? | Environmental Laws in the U.S.
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EPA. In 1970, the legislative and executive branches worked together to establish the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help meet the demands for a cleaner environment.
Kennedy. President Kennedy encouraged Congress to pass the Clean Air Act of 1963. This was the first national air-quality act, however, and it did not place any regulations on pollution.
| Which state department was responsible for seeking a balance between economic growth and the preservation of natural resources in the late 1800s? | Environmental Laws in the U.S.
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Department of the Interior. The Department of the Interior (DOI) was created in 1845 to see that our natural resources are preserved and protected. Agencies under the DOI include the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service.
Mike Leavitt. EPA Administrator, Mike Leavitt, was sworn in on November 6, 2003, as the 10th Administrator of the EPA. He is the former governer of Utah and led the state during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. The 2002 Olympics Games were the most environmentally-sensitive games ever and organizers met the zero waste and zero air emmission requirements.
hydropower. Hydropower is the most popular renewable energy source and makes up 80% of renewable energy in the United States. Hydropower is the power to generate electricity from running water. It is very cheap and produces no pollution. However, the creation of new dams is producing a controversy due to the effect it has on natural ecosystems in that area. Nancy Kubasek, "Environmental Law", 4 ed. (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002).
Gale Norton. Gale Norton was sworn in to head the Department of the Interior (DOI) in January 2001. She is the first woman ever to head this department. Norton hails from Colorado where she was the Attorney General from 1991 to 1999.
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