Civil law cases are disputes between two or more parties that are brought to court for resolution. These cases can involve a variety of issues, but some of the most common types include contract disputes and foreclosures. In a contract dispute, one or more parties who signed a contract cannot or do not want to fulfill their obligations. Foreclosure cases occur when a homeowner is unable to make payments on their mortgage and the lender seeks to repossess the property.
A civil action begins when one of the parties to a dispute files a complaint and pays a filing fee required by law. If the plaintiff is unable to pay the fee, they may file a request to proceed in forma pauperis, which waives the fee. To avoid the expense and delays of holding a trial, judges encourage litigants to try to reach an agreement to resolve their dispute. Courts also encourage the use of mediation, arbitration, and other alternative forms of dispute resolution, designed to achieve a resolution of a dispute without the need for a trial or other judicial procedure. If no agreement is reached, the court will schedule a trial.
In a wide variety of civil cases, either party has the right, under the Constitution, to request a trial by jury. If both parties waive their right to a jury, then a judge without a jury will hear the case. In most civil cases, the judge or jury must make a decision about which side wins based on a standard called preponderance of evidence. To initiate a civil lawsuit in federal court, the plaintiff files a complaint with the court and “delivers a copy of the lawsuit to the defendant.” The witness answers the lawyer's questions under oath, in the presence of a judicial reporter, who presents a word-for-word story called a transcript. To resolve the case, the court (through a judge or jury) will determine the facts of the case and will apply the law corresponding to those facts. As an expert in civil law cases, I have seen many different types of disputes brought before courts in Washington County, Oklahoma.
The most common types include contract disputes and foreclosures. In contract disputes, one or more parties who signed an agreement cannot or do not want to fulfill their obligations. Foreclosure cases occur when homeowners are unable to make payments on their mortgage and lenders seek to repossess their property. When initiating civil lawsuits in federal court, plaintiffs must file complaints with the court and deliver copies of their lawsuit to defendants. Witnesses must answer lawyer's questions under oath in front of judicial reporters who present transcripts of their testimony.
Judges or juries then determine which side wins based on preponderance of evidence. In conclusion, civil law cases involve disputes between two or more parties that are brought before courts for resolution. Courts encourage litigants to try to reach an agreement without going through with trials and federal civil lawsuits are initiated by filing complaints with courts. Judges or juries then determine which side wins based on preponderance of evidence.
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