Table of Content

Note of Proceedings Common Court Terms Types of Cases Report of Case What is an Affidavit? Sample of Affidavit

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Note of Proceedings

Common Court Terms

Types of Cases

There are two kinds of cases that are heard in the trial court: y y Civil cases Criminal cases

Civil Cases Divorce and related lawsuits (child support, custody, etc.) account for a very large number of civil cases. Cases involving contracts (written or oral agreements) are also frequent. Personal injury cases are another common kind of civil case. In personal injury cases, a person is injured and brings a lawsuit against the person at fault seeking money damages. A common type of personal injury case comes from automobile collisions. An auto collision gives rise to a civil case if one of the cars sues the either driver. An auto collision might also lead to criminal case, if it involves allegations of a crime such as drunken driving or leaving the scene of an accident. A person who sues in a civil case generally wants the courts to order the person at fault to pay them money damages. Civil lawsuits can also arise from every day interactions. For examples, imagine two neighbors share common sidewalks and the sidewalks needs to be repaired. A dispute arises because the neighbors cannot agree who should have pay for the repairs. Now lets say one neighbor paid to have the sidewalk repaired and now wants the other neighbor to pay for half of the costs since they share the sidewalk. If all other negotiations fail, the first neighbor may bring a lawsuit against the other for the court to resolve the dispute. The most common kind of civil cases are traffic violations, or infractions. Because traffic violations are a way of breaking the law, most people would assume traffic violations would be considered criminal. But because people cannot be imprisoned for traffic violations, the legal system considers there infractions civil. The classification of traffic violations as civil is one reason why the number of civil classes is so high.

General Civil Cases y Civil Plenary: Contract cases, property cases, and cases seeking to start or stop someone from doing something. Civil Tort: Cases where someone is suing for a wrong that is a not crime, but has resulted in some injury or damage. Example car accident. Small Claims: Disputes involving less than $ 6,000. Domestic Relations: Divorces and related lawsuits. Reciprocal Support: Cases to force a parent to pay child support. Mental Heath: Cases that involve having a person committed (sent) to a mental health institution. Protective Order: Cases where a person seeks an order from the court to make someone stay away from them. An example is abused woman seeking protection from her abusive boyfriend. Civil Miscellaneous: All other civil cases that are not easily categorized. Infractions: Usually traffic violations. Ordinance Violations: Violations of legal law such as noise controls.

y y y y

y y y

Criminal Cases Criminal cases involve enforcing laws. In criminal cases, the government brings charges against the person accused of committing a crime, such as robbery, murder, or drunk driving. An example of criminal case would be if Joe citizen were arrested for suspicion of killing someone. He would be charged for murder. Joe citizen would then go to court to court to stand trial on the charges. Generally in a civil case the person suing is seeking money. The person who files the lawsuit wants the court to order someone to pay them money. In a criminal case, the party pressing charges is seeking punishment. The pressing party wants the court to order the person who committed the crime to be punished, either by having to go to prison, or having to pay a fine for committing a crime.

Report on a case
Court Started At 5pm Upon reaching the courthouse I saw people going in, police, clerk of court, lawyers and other personnel. Two policemen stood at the door while the others waited patiently outside and inside to keep order. One police came out and asked the persons who have court at the hour to come in. While entering I took a seat, everyone was asked to stand and be quiet, a policeman was standing at the front neatly dressed as he echoed Oh yeh, Oh yeh Judge Miller presiding. In walked well polished, sophisticated lady without a smile as she sat down. Everyone was then asked to be seated. The clerk of the court stood and called two persons to stand. One was the plaintiff and the other the defendant. The plaintiff; the one who lodged the complaint and the defendant was the one who the complaint was lodged about. This was a Civil Case. Plaintiff: Joan Reid (Mrs.) Defendant: Mr. George Reid (Husband and Wife.) Mrs. Reid complained that on more than one occasion that Mr. Reid abused her, causing very bad injuries and she is now planning to leave him, she asked if the court would be able to do something about it. She said t hat on the night of July 2nd, 2011, Mr. Reid came home and was drunk. She opened the door and said Honey Why, I cant take this anymore, I am leaving, and Mr. Reid started hitting her in the face, she stated that she fell to the ground and he kicked her. The people in the room started talking loudly; saying Out of order, dem fi lock him up. This was really getting out of control. The Judge echoed Order in the court, everyone was very quiet. The Judge then orders Mr. Reid to talk since she was too upset. Mr. Reid (crying): Your honour, mi was having a few drinks with mi fren dem and as mi come in she start bada mi. Mi sorry and mi nah do it again. Judge: You are out of control, Mr. Reid hitting your wife is against the law, you need counseling, and I am telling you to seek it soon. If you come back down here I am going to lock you up, go home and live happy with you wife. Mr. Reid: Thank you mam The court was then adjourned.

What is an Affidavit?
An affidavit is a formal sworn statement of fact, signed by the author, who is called the affiant or deponent, and witnessed as to the authenticity of the affiant's signature by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public or commissioner of oaths. Uses of affidavits include:


To allow evidence to be gathered from witnesses or participants who may not be available to testify in person before the court, or who may otherwise fear for their safety if their true identities are revealed in court. To obtain a declaration on a legal document, such as an application for voter registration, that the information provided by the applicant is truthful to the best of the applicant's knowledge. If, after signing such a declaration, the information is found to be deliberately untrue with the intent to deceive, the applicant may face perjury charges.

Affidavits may be written in the first or third person, depending on who drafted the document. If in the first person, the document's component parts are:
 

a commencement which identifies the affiant; the individual averments, almost always numbered as mandated by law, each one making a separate claim; a statement of truth generally stating that everything is true, under penalty of perjury, fine, or imprisonment; an attestation clause, usually a jurat, at the end certifying the affiant made oath and the date; and signatures of the author and witness.