Civil Courts

Civil Courts

What kind of cases do civil courts hear?

Disputes between 2 people, groups, or companies.

Who is involved in a civil case?

The plaintiff is the person who has filed a lawsuit.



A lawsuit is a legal claim that a person has caused harm and should pay damages (money).




The defendant is the person being sued.

What kind of civil cases are there?

Focusing on 2 types:

Tort means that someone has cause harm through their actions.



Breach of Contract: someone has failed to uphold a legal agreement.

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The burden of proof

In a civil case, the burden of proof is preponderance of evidence.



This means, to win the case, one side has to 51% more convincing than the other side.

​Most civil cases never go to trial.

Trials may not happen for a year or more, take a lot of time, and are very expensive.



There are alternatives.

​Out of court settlement.

Lawyers work out an agreement where the defendant usually agrees to pay a certain amount and does not have to admit guilt.



This is popular with businesses who don't want the negative publicity and feel the settlement will cost less than going to trial.

Arbitration

A neutral person hears both sides of the dispute and makes a decision.

Mediation

A neutral person works with both sides in the dispute to work out an agreement.

Multiple Choice

Jojo sued Rick for breaking his favorite pencil. This is a ______ case. 

• Criminal

• Civil

• Legal 

• Consumer Rights 

Multiple Choice

If a civil case goes to court, what is the name for the person who sues someone else?

• Prosecution

• Plaintiff

• Torter

• Defendant

Multiple Choice

If a civil case goes to court, what is the name for the person who is being sued?

• Prosecution

• Plaintiff

• Torter

• Defendant

Multiple Choice

Jeff is walking down the street, and is attacked by Tom. Tom hits Jeff with a baseball bat and steals his wallet. Which of the following legal actions may be brought against Tom?

• a tort lawsuit

• a criminal lawsuit

• either a tort suit or a criminal suit, but not both

• both a tort and a criminal lawsuit

Multiple Choice

90% of civil cases are

• taken to trial.
• settled.
• stuck in pre-trial motions.
• difficult to get to mediation.

Multiple Choice

This is a monetary award intended to compensate the injured party for the harm done to him or her. 

• Tort
• damages
• master-servant rule
• negligence 

Multiple Choice

A service that provides an impartial referee to settle disputes is known as?

• Arbitration
• Negotiation
• Mediation
• Litigation

Multiple Select

Which of the following is an advantage of an out of court settlement?

Select all the answers you think are correct

• Quicker and cheaper

• Less complicated than the courts

• Can be difficult to enforce

• Is not an adversarial process

Multiple Choice

A process by which people agree to use a third party to work with them to settle a conflict.

• mediation

• arbitration

• small claims court