| Service of Process -- Notice of a Lawsuit |
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| A lawsuit begins when a plaintiff (the party suing) files a complaint with the clerk of courts. The defendant (the person or company being sued) is given notice that a lawsuit has been filed and is "summoned" to appear before the court. Service of process means that the defendant is given notice of the lawsuit and a copy of the complaint that was filed. More... |
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| Quo Warranto |
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| A writ in quo warranto, which is Latin for "by what warrant," is an extraordinary legal remedy. It requires a person to show his/her authority for holding an office or challenges the wrongful exercise of powers. A common quo warranto claim is that a government or corporate officer was not validly elected to office or is exercising powers in excess of his/her authority. A state might bring a suit in quo warranto demanding a person or corporation to show the authority for exercising some franchise or privilege granted to it by the state.
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| Settlement Conferences in Federal Courts of Appeals |
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| There are 13 judicial circuits, and each circuit has a court of appeals. The federal courts of appeals are intermediate appellate courts. They hear appeals from federal district courts, which are trial level courts. In response to the ever-increasing volume of cases, some federal courts of appeals have adopted settlement programs in an effort to reduce the backlog of cases and accelerate the appeal process. More... |
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| General Civil Litigation |
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| Criminal litigation involves the government's prosecution of a person because of an alleged commission of a crime. Criminal behavior is punished by imposing a fine and/or imprisonment on the offender. All criminal proceedings are initiated by a government entity. General civil litigation, on the other hand, involves disputes between private parties. A civil lawsuit is initiated by one person against another person, business, or government entity. There can be multiple plaintiffs (person suing) and/or multiple defendan More... |
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| Drug Courts |
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| Drug-related crimes are widespread, and specialized courts have been set up to deal with drug cases. Drugs courts recognize the connection between addiction and criminal behavior. Many addicts commit crimes to get money to support their drug habits. Drug courts use a therapeutic justice model, which includes treatment services to address defendants' substance abuse problems. Almost all states currently have drug courts, and some states have set up juvenile drug courts to handle delinquency cases involving juveniles with substance abuse issues. More... |
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