Represent yourself in court: how to prepare & try a winning case, 7th Edition

Web Resources......Page 0
Table of Contents......Page 9
1. Going It Alone in Court......Page 17
The Scope of This Book......Page 18
Can You Really Represent Yourself?......Page 21
Coping With Being a Stranger in a Strange Land......Page 22
Finding a Legal Coach......Page 23
Using This Book......Page 26
Trying to Settle Your Case......Page 28
Alternatives to Trial......Page 29
2. The Courthouse and the Courtroom......Page 33
An Overview of Different Courts......Page 35
A Typical Courthouse......Page 36
The Courtroom Players......Page 39
The Courtroom and Its Physical Layout......Page 45
Courtroom Rules, Customs, and Etiquette......Page 48
3. Starting Your Case......Page 53
Do You Have a Good Case?......Page 55
Is Your Lawsuit Timely?......Page 58
Which Court Has the Power to Hear Your Case?......Page 62
Beginning a Lawsuit......Page 71
4. Pretrial Procedures......Page 89
Know and Follow Pretrial Deadlines......Page 90
Court-Ordered Mediation and Arbitration......Page 91
Initial Pretrial Procedures: Setting Ground Rules......Page 92
Intermediate Pretrial Procedures: Discovery and Motions......Page 96
Final Pretrial Procedures: Trial Preparation......Page 100
5. Investigating Your Case......Page 109
Informal Investigation......Page 110
Formal Discovery......Page 116
Depositions......Page 120
Written Interrogatories......Page 136
Requests for Production of Documents and Subpoenas......Page 141
Requests for Admissions......Page 145
6. Settlement......Page 149
Court-Ordered Mediation......Page 152
Court-Ordered Arbitration......Page 156
Pretrial Settlement Conferences......Page 158
Post-Settlement Documents......Page 161
7. Pretrial Motions......Page 163
Overview of Pretrial Motion Practice......Page 164
What Goes Into a Motion?......Page 168
Serving and Filing Your Documents......Page 170
Court Hearings on Motions......Page 171
Common Pretrial Motions......Page 173
8. Proving Your Case at Trial: The Plaintiff’s Perspective......Page 199
The Elements of a Legal Claim......Page 200
Proving Each Element......Page 202
Your Burden of Proof......Page 204
Identifying Facts to Prove the Elements of Your Claim......Page 206
Looking Ahead to Trial: Organizing Your Evidence......Page 211
Learning About Your Adversary’s Case......Page 214
9. Proving Your Case at Trial: The Defendant’s Perspective......Page 215
Identifying the Plaintiff’s Facts......Page 217
Defeating Any One Element of a Claim......Page 219
Disproving the Plaintiff’s Facts by Impeaching Witnesses......Page 220
Proving Your Version of Events......Page 221
Putting Defense Strategies Together......Page 222
10. Selecting the Decision Maker......Page 227
Are You Better Off With a Judge or a Jury?......Page 228
Disqualifying a Judge......Page 229
Making a Timely Request for a Jury Trial......Page 231
The Jury Selection Process......Page 232
Your Right to Challenge Jurors......Page 234
What Jurors Should You Challenge?......Page 238
What Should You Ask Prospective Jurors?......Page 239
Alternate Jurors......Page 242
11. Opening Statement......Page 245
Should You Make an Opening Statement?......Page 246
When to Make Your Opening Statement......Page 247
Putting Together Your Opening Statement......Page 248
What Not to Say During Your Opening Statement......Page 250
Rehearsing and Presenting Your Opening Statement......Page 254
Sample Opening Statement and Outline......Page 255
12. Direct Examination......Page 259
Overview of Direct Examination Procedures......Page 260
Preparing for Direct Examination......Page 262
Presenting Your Own Testimony on Direct Examination......Page 266
Questioning Witnesses......Page 267
Hostile Witnesses......Page 278
The Judge’s Role......Page 280
Sample Direct Examination......Page 281
13. Cross-Examination......Page 285
Overview of Cross-Examination......Page 286
Should You Cross-Examine?......Page 288
Asking Questions on Cross-Examination......Page 289
Eliciting Helpful Evidence......Page 291
Impeaching Adverse Witnesses......Page 294
What to Do If Your Witness Is Impeached......Page 302
Preparing for Cross-Examination......Page 303
14. Closing Argument......Page 305
Preparing and Rehearsing Your Closing Argument......Page 306
Putting Together a Closing Argument......Page 307
What Not to Say During Your Closing Argument......Page 317
Objections During Closing......Page 318
Sample Closing Argument and Outline......Page 319
15. Exhibits......Page 325
Overview of Admitting Exhibits Into Evidence......Page 326
Step 1: Mark Your Exhibits and Show Them to Your Adversary......Page 327
Step 3: Lay a Foundation......Page 329
Letting Jurors See Your Exhibits......Page 342
Objecting to Your Adversary’s Exhibits......Page 343
Organizing Exhibits for Trial......Page 346
16. Basic Rules of Evidence......Page 347
Relevance......Page 348
Excluding Relevant but Unfairly Prejudicial Evidence......Page 350
The Rule Against Opinions......Page 351
Rules Excluding Evidence Based on Social Policies......Page 354
Hearsay......Page 357
17. Making and Responding to Objections......Page 367
Overview of Objections......Page 368
Objections Made Before Trial: Motions in Limine......Page 369
Making Objections During Trial......Page 370
Responding to Your Adversary’s Objections......Page 375
Checklist of Common Objections......Page 379
18. Organizing a Trial Notebook......Page 385
Index Tab 1: Legal Pleadings......Page 386
Index Tab 2: Discovery Materials......Page 387
Index Tab 5: Direct Examination Outlines......Page 388
Index Tab 6: Cross-Examination Outlines......Page 389
Index Tab 8: Jury Trial Documents......Page 390
Index Tab 9: Miscellaneous Documents......Page 391
19. Expert Witnesses......Page 393
Do You Need an Expert Witness?......Page 394
Special Rules for Expert Witnesses......Page 396
Finding and Hiring an Expert Witness......Page 399
Questioning Your Expert Witness at Trial......Page 403
Cross-Examining Your Opponent’s Expert Witness......Page 410
20. When Your Trial Ends: Judgments and Appeals......Page 413
How Final Decisions Are Made at the End of Trial......Page 415
Requesting a New Trial or Change in the Verdict......Page 417
Appeals......Page 419
Collecting and Paying Judgments......Page 423
21. Representing Yourself in Family Court......Page 433
Formulate a Divorce Game Plan......Page 436
Understanding the Basics of Family Law......Page 449
Filing for Divorce......Page 456
How Uncontested Divorces Work......Page 459
How Contested Divorces Work......Page 463
Modification of Support, Custody, and Visitation......Page 469
22. Representing Yourself in Bankruptcy Court......Page 479
The Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Process......Page 480
Meeting of Creditors (341(a) Hearing)......Page 483
Relief From Stay Hearing......Page 484
Objection to Exemption Hearing......Page 486
Discharge of Debt Hearing......Page 488
Reaffirmation of Debt Hearing......Page 489
Getting Help Beyond This Book......Page 490
23. Help Beyond the Book: People, Places, and Publications......Page 493
What You May Want to Research......Page 494
Sources of Information......Page 497
Getting Help From a Lawyer......Page 509
Glossary......Page 517
Index......Page 533
Related Products......Page 547