Business Law

rly every businessperson will face either a poten- tial or an actual lawsuit at some time or another. For this rea- son, anyone contemplating a career in business will benefit from an understanding of court systems in the United States, including the mechanics of lawsuits. In this chapter, after examining the judiciary’s overall role in the American governmental scheme, we discuss some basic requirements that must be met before a party may bring a lawsuit before a particular court. We then look at the court systems of the United States in some detail and, to clarify judicial procedures, follow a hypothetical case through a state court system. Even though there are fifty-two court sys- tems in the United States—one for each of the fifty states, one for the District of Columbia, plus a federal system—sim- ilarities abound. Keep in mind that the federal courts are not superior to the state courts; they are simply an independent system of courts, which derives its authority from Article III, Sections 1 and 2, of the U.S. Constitution. The chapter con- cludes with an overview of some alternative methods of set- tling disputes, including methods for settling disputes in online forums. U

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AFTER READING THIS CHAPTER, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

1 What is judicial review? How and when was the power of judicial review established?

2 Before a court can hear a case, it must have jurisdiction. Over what must it have jurisdiction? How are the courts applying traditional jurisdictional concepts to cases involving Internet transactions?

3 What is the difference between a trial court and an appellate court?

4 In a lawsuit, what are the pleadings? What is discovery, and how does electronic discovery differ from traditional discovery? What is electronic filing?

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