1.2:
Lawsuit: A claim or dispute brought to a court to be resolved.
Appeal: After a trial court has decided a lawsuit, the ability to ask a higher
court to review that decision to determine whether it was correct.
Parties: The individuals or businesses involved in a lawsuit.
Plaintiff: The individual or business who started or initiated the lawsuit.
Defendant: The individual or business who is being sued.
Prosecutor: A public of cial acting on behalf of the government, who brings
a lawsuit against someone. This term is usually only used in criminal
proceedings.
Jurisdiction: The power of a court to make legal decisions and judgment.
Standing: An individual or businesses’ ability to demonstrate it has a
suf cient connection to the harm or law that is the subject of a lawsuit.
Here’s a great article about this topic:
1.3:
Cause of action: the reason someone is suing another person
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Choice of Law is a clause that can be added to any contract that details
which law will be applied to the contract. Here is an example of such a
clause:
Forum Selection clause is a little different, in that now the parties in a
contract agree to “where” the lawsuit shall be led. Check out this quick
video (below) explaining it.
1.4:
Class notes:
- laws (rights from the constitution): amendments
- What is a statue?
- (federal) Laws passed by congress
- (Local) laws passed in California
- Ex: weed federally illegal but legal in CA, feds could bust
dispensaries if they wanted in CA but decide not to
- Ex: CA law says you can’t false advertise and can face 250k ne or
6mo jail time
- ex: business located outside of CA must pay taxes in CA if they are
doing business within the state
- What is administrative law:
- Law that regulates the operation and procedures of government
agencies, how they enforce law given to them by the legislature
- ex: cdc introduced to help with public health based on law that was
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passed
- Stare Decisis: to stand by things decided, the rule of precedent
- A doctrine that is referred to when dealing with similar issues
- Precedent: past ruling created by a court ^
- Federal precedent has jurisdiction over all states
- Precedents set by states only need to be followed by the states
Civil Law vs. Criminal Law:
- Civil:
- Pay in damages (money)
- Judge cannot send defendant to jail
- Can call defendant as witness
- Preponderance of the evidence, prove more than the other side,
burden rests with the plainti
- Plainti is the person suing someone
- Defendant is defending themselves
- Punitive damages are meant to punish, beyond compensating, can be
hundreds of millions
- Only have two years for verbal contract, 4 years for written contract
- Criminal:
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- Pay in freedom (jail time), nes, or educational classes
- Cannot call defendant as witness (plead the 5th)
- Prove beyond a reasonable doubt, burden rests with the
government
- Prosecutor and defendant
- Can be found not guilty in criminal court but found guilty in civil court
- ex: OJ found not guilty in criminal but found guilty in civil court for
wrongful death, forced to pay millions
- Business have right to:
- Commercial speech: must concern lawful activity and not be
misleading
- Our legal system is common law (aka case law): voted people make
laws that are interpreted in court, we then follow what judges say
- Judges and lawyers in a civil system are more investigators
- Three levels in Californias court system:
- County court: where criminal and civil trials take place
- Court of appeals: review cases appealed if one party protests decision
- Supreme Court: 7 judges, nal decisions on verdicts for CA
- Federal court system:
- US DISTRICT COURTS
- US COURT OF APPEALS
- US SUPREME COURT
- Jurisdiction:
- Limitation on the types of cases a court can hear
- 1. Subject of lawsuit
- 2. Sum ($) in controversy
- 3. Whether proceeding is trial or appeal
Original and Appellate jurisdiction
1. Courts of original jurisdiction - where the case started (trial)
2. Courts of appellate jurisdiction have the power to hear an appeal
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for another court
- State courts have almost unlimited subject matter jurisdiction (can hear
any type of case)
- Federal courts only have the power to decide certain types of cases
- Limited subject matter jurisdiction:
- Federal questions (laws that congress passed)
- Diversity of Citizenship:
- Diversity cases occur when:
- 1. Parties not from same state and the amount of controversy is
greater than 75,000
- Exclusive jurisdiction vs concurrent jurisdiction
- concurrent: exists when two di erent courts have the power to hear a
case
- exclusive: ex: bankruptcy can only be heard in bankruptcy court
International jurisdiction:
- international courts seem to apply the “minimum contacts”
requirements which the US courts apply
- Therefore you need to be “doing business” within that jurisdiction
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- Put in your contract that cases will be heard in US court
Can the US courts have jurisdiction over wang who lives in china?
- Gucci case
- using trademark and selling counterfeit Gucci goods within the US
Process of ling lawsuit:
1. Complaint
2. Complaint served on defendants: email, mail, must prove
3. Response led
4. Research and strategy
5. Discovery: investigation, gathering documents and answers to
questions
6. Depositions: interviewing people
7. Mediation
8. Trial prep
9. Trial
85%-90% of civil cases settled before trial
review: preponderance of evidence: 51% chance they did it
: beyond a reasonable doubt: 99% chance they did it
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Complaint and response