Microeconomics

Chapter 2: Resolution of Disputes, pg. 1In this chapter, lectures zeroed in on how a lawsuit is initiated (filing a  and filing an ) and what transpires between the time the answer is filed and a trial commences (if a  does occur) which is called the  phase. We established an understanding that a complaint is a document that contains the plaintiff's  and that the plaintiff has the burden of proving the allegations at trial by a . The allegations contained in the complaint are just that, allegations! A statement by a party in a lawsuit of what that party hopes to prove is essentially the definition of an allegation.

In the , the defendant generally denies the allegations in the complaint. When this occurs there exists a . However, not every lawsuit involves a factual dispute. There are some lawsuits in which both the plaintiff and the defendant agree on the facts but disagree about the law. In these situations there is not factual dispute.

You are expected to understand the discovery process and what the parties are attempting to accomplish during . Each side attempts to learn as much as possible about the facts of the case. The parties attempt to gather as much evidence as they can so that they can come to a realistic assessment of the facts and strength or weakness in their and the opponent's case. How is this accomplished?

, ,  and are the means used to discover evidence.

 is an inexpensive to obtain information. Only a party to the lawsuit can be served with interrogatories.

A  is a procedure wherein the deponent must answer questions under oath. It provides an opportunity to assess how the deponent will do when testifying at trial. A deposition is an effective discovery tool but can be quite expensive. The lawyer(s) must be paid and the deposition transcript (which is prepared by the court reporter who was present at the deposition) can be quite costly.

A  is an attempt to narrow the issues in the lawsuit by getting the other party to admit to...