General Litigation
| Judicial Administration |
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| Judicial administration refers to the management of state and federal court systems. The chief judge or justice of the court is ultimately responsible for the functioning of the court. Court administrators are responsible for many of the court's day-to-day operations such as budgets, personnel supervision, and the preparation of statistics and annual reports. Court clerks manage court calendars and court records. Other aspects of judicial administration include jury management, assignment of cases to judges, and oversight of ethical complaints against lawyers. More... |
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| Extrajudicial Speech and Judicial Ethics |
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| There are standards of conduct for judges that assure judicial ethics. The goal of the standards is to assure judges' impartiality and avoid improprieties. There are codes of judicial conduct for both state and federal judges. In general, the code of judicial conduct requires a judge to uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary, avoid the impropriety or the appearance of impropriety in any activities, and perform his/her duties impartially and diligently. Judges are also required to conduct extrajudicial activities in a way that reduces the risk of conflict with judicial duties. More... |
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| Declaratory Judgments |
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| Laws have been adopted that give both the state courts and the federal courts the power to declare or define the legal rights, duties, obligations, or status of the parties involved in a dispute. In a declaratory judgment suit, the court does not award any damages and does not order either party to do anything.
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| State Court System Overview |
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| Each of the 50 states has its own court system. Each state system has three levels: the lowest level (generally called trial court), an appellate level (generally called a court of appeal), and the highest level (generally called a supreme court). More... |
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| The Discovery Process in Civil Lawsuits |
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| After a lawsuit is filed, both the plaintiff (the person suing) and the defendant (the person or company being sued) can engage in a process called discovery. Discovery is conducted before trial. The purpose of discovery is to allow a party to learn more about the pertinent facts of the case and the other party's evidence. The main tools used in the discovery process are depositions, interrogatories, and requests for documents. More... |
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