Chapter 2: Dispute Settlement

NY State Criminal Court Structure

NY State Civil Court Structure

Inferior courts

• not courts of record (no transcripts of proceedings)

• without a record, there’s no appeal

• may be called municipal courts in urban areas and justice of peace courts in rural areas

• small claims courts - handle civil matters involving a limtied amount of money (informal)

trial courts

• courts of general jurisdiction (not limited by the amount of civil damages that can be awarded or the criminal penalties that can be imposed

• courts of record

appeal courts

hear cases that have been appealed from trial court decisions or state administrative agency rulings

federal courts

diversity cases

if parties to the dispute are citizens of different states (if the dispute is 75,000 or more, plaintiff has the option of choosing to be heard in state or federal court)

conflict of laws

provide rules for a court to follow in deciding which state’s laws to apply

district court

most lawsuits with few exceptions must be started in district courts

special courts

ex tax courts hear appeals from IRS decisions

Court of Appeals

• an appeal from a district court is taken here

• 13 of them (12 have general appellate federal jurisdiction but 1 is for D.C. alone, the 13th one is for specialized federal cases)

• usually heard by 3 judges, but some may be heard of all judges of the circuit

writ of certiorari of the Supreme Court

cert is granted if

• there have been conflicting decisions in similar cases by different courts of appeal

• or from the highest court of a state where a right is claimed under the Constitution

• or where the validity of a federal statute is in question

litigation

• where one or both parties file a lawsuit with the expectation that a court will receive the dispute

• usually a last resort after negotiation/mediation have failed

moot cases

events occurring after the filing of the lawsuit have made a decision beside the point

standing

courts only permit a plaintiff to bring a lawsuit if they have standing

to meet this standard a plaintiff must show that

1. they suffered an actual injury

2. that is traceable to the challenged conduct of the defendant

3. that the injury could be redressed by a favorable judicial decision

class action lawsuits

• when a defendant’s actions have injured many plaintiffs

• protect against repetitious claims that could result in inconsistent results if tried individually

1 or more members of a class may sue or be sued as a representative of a class if

1. if the class is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable

2. there are questions of law or fact common to the class

3. the class or defenses of the representative parties are typical of the claims or defenses of the class

4. the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class

Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA)

• Congress enabled this in response to concerns that the actions were undermining the national judicial system, the free flow of interstate commerce, and the concept of diversity jurisdiction

• limits the amount of fees attorneys may receive, etc

jurisdiction

the authority of the court to hear and determine disputes

subject matter jurisdiction

• can only hear cases involving certain types of controversies, such as tax disputes or juvenile matters

• some are also limited by the amount of damages being sought or the penalty to be assessed

personal jurisdiction

minimum contacts generally are met when

1. the defendant is a resident of the court’s territory

2. the defendant has a physical presence in there

3. the defendant has purposely availed itself of business in the corut’s territory

4. the defendant has a committed a crime in tort there

long arm rule

 a state’s summons may be delivered to defendant out of state if that defendant 

• Commits a tort

• Signs a contract in that state

• Does business with that state

general jurisdiction

when the defendant’s contact with the court’s territory is so continuous and systematic as to render it essentially at home in the forum state

specific jurisdiction

when the injuries triggering the litigation arose out of and are related to activities that are significant and purposefully directed by the defendant at residents of the forum

venue

• venue rules are established by the states

• these rules tell the country where the plaintiff must file suit (ex a criminal case must be filed in the country where the crime took place)

forum non conveniens

doctrine permits a court, upon petition by the defendant, to dismiss the lawsuit when it believes it would be more convenient and fair to have the case tried in anoter forum

3 step test for forum non conveniens

1. is there another forum with subject matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction over the defendant?

2. Do the private factors (access to evidence, courts of summon witnesses, need to view physical premises, and the enforceability of the court’s judgment favor the other forum?

3. Do the public factors (court congestion, relevance of the dispute to the community, and familiarity of the court with the law governing the dispute) favor the other forum?

exclusive (mandatory) clause of the forum selection clause

requires that ant lawsuit must be filed only in the designated court

nonexclusive (permissive) clause of the forum selection clause

permits suit to be brought in designated forum but does not prevent a plaintiff from being somewhere else instead

civil procedure

procedural law - the body of legal ruls governing the conduct of the case

pleadings

• first documents filed with the court and they start and define the lawsuit

• inform the parties of each other’s claims and they form the basis for trial

the complaint

• first step in filing a lawsuit is the filing of the complaint

• must contain sufficient facts to show that the plaintiff is entitled to some legal relief and to give the defendant reasonable notice of the nature of the plaintiff’s claim

the answer

• defendant makes an appearance by filing an answer to the complaint (usually done by the defendant’s attorney)

• if the defendant fails to appear the plaintiff is entitled to default judgment or winning everything requested

a defaulting party may be able to persuade the court to vacate or overturn a default judgment and conduct a trial if they can show

1. the default was due to negligence or some other unintentional reason (not willful)

2. the defaulting party had a reasonable chance of winning (meritorious defense) if a trial were held

3. the non defaulting party will not suffer undue prejudice

affirmative defense

a rule of law enabling the defendant to win even if all the plaintiff’s allegations were true

counterclaim

a new claim stating that the plaintiff owes defendant damages because of harm resulting from the incident alleged in the complaint

motion to dismiss

if it is clear that the plaintiff has no causes, it would be wasteful for the case to continue and the motion would be granted

reply

in some jurisdictions, the plaintiff is allowed or required to reply to ana affirmative defense or counterclaim

discovery

• the time during which the parties gather the evidence they will use at trial to prove or disprove the allegations

• both parties have equal access to the facts

deposition

an examination under oath in the presence of the attorney for the other party

interrogatories

answer written questions under oath

pre trial conference

designed to narrow issues to be proved at trial or to facilitate a settlement (in judge’s chambers); stipulate the facts and negotiate as well

directed verdict

judge grants the motion only if plaintiff’s evidence is clearly insufficient

preponderance of evidence

plaintiff shows that a claim is more likely than not to be true

hung jury

cannot come to a unanimous verdic

writ of execution

orders the sheriff to seize and sell enough of the defendant’s property to satisfy the judgment

writ of garnishment

designed to reach things belonging to the debtor that are in the hands of third parties such as wages, bank accounts, etc

basis of appeal

• a party must show that the court made an error of law or that the evidence did not support the court decision

• must file an appeal with proper appellate court within period of time established by the statute

• transcript of entire trial must be prepared

what attorneys do for an appeal

• attorneys must submit a brief or written argument supporting their claims

• sometimes attorneys ask to make oral arguments and if granted they have a limited amount of time and judges frequently interrupt with questions

to successfully appeal

parties must show that their errors were material (important enough to possibly change trial outcome)

apepal decisions

• based on majority rule

• prior decisions are either affirmed, reversed, or reversed and remanded in which a new trial is needed with the new interpretation of the law

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

growing trend is collaborative counselors (specially trained people, usually lawyers who are engaged in settlement negotiations)

mediation

• used when negotiation is failing

• third party is chosen to assist in settling the matter and they act as a facilitator

• mediation agreement - when mediation is successful

• not binding

arbitration

• third party decides the outcome (ex commercial contracts with arbitration clauses)

• arbitrator is usually an expert on the subject matter

Federal Arbitration Act (1925)

makes both the agreement of parties to arbitrate and resulting arbitrationa ward enforceable in court

mini trial

designed to refocus a commercial dispute as a business problem and executives meet with lawyers to negotiate a contract

summary jury trial

similar to mini trial, but conducted under court guidance (includes 6 member mock jury and the judge meets with parties after to help reach a settlement

private judging

• some parties avoid trial by hiring their own judge

• hired judge (often retired) renders a binding opinion after hearing proofs and arguments

ombudsperson

an individual appointed within an organization to settle disputes, to private panels, and to small claim courts

mediation/arbitration

third party is first a mediator, then an arbitrator