© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 1

2 Chapter 2: Court Systems and Legal Procedures

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 3 Introduction Role of courts is to resolve disputes. Similarities in federal and state systems. Multitier structure: –Trial court –Court of appeals –Supreme court “Jurisdiction” different in federal and state court systems –Court’s authority to hear and decide a case

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 4 Jurisdiction The authority of courts to hear and decide a case Authority must be over: –Parties involved, known as personal jurisdiction –Question at issue in case, known as subject matter jurisdiction

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 5 Jurisdiction of Federal Courts Cases brought before a federal court must involve either: –Federal question jurisdiction The case involves the U.S. Constitution, federal statute, rule, or regulation –Diversity jurisdiction Case involving BOTH –Citizens of different states AND –Amount in controversy more than $75,000 Federal judge applies state law

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 6 Jurisdiction of State Court General jurisdiction: State court’s subject matter jurisdiction is not limited However, state’s court system may establish courts with special focus: –Family courts and probate courts –Criminal courts –Small claims

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 7 Concurrent Jurisdiction Some lawsuits may be brought in either state or federal court

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 8 Personal Jurisdiction For court to hear a case, it must have authority over the persons involved Plaintiff: when she files suit, the plaintiff voluntarily submits to court’s jurisdiction Defendant: jurisdiction depends on certain factors –Was the summons and complaint served properly? –Where did the events at issue take place?

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 9 Structure of the Court System

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 10 Court System: Trial Courts Supervise discovery process before trial –Interrogatories, depositions, and production of documents – Pre-trial conferences and motions are heard. Conduct trials –Judge and jury listen to testimony –View exhibits –Decide matter and attempt to reach a verdict Trial courts at federal level are called district courts

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 11 Court System: Appellate Court Losing party may disagree with outcome Appeals of trial verdicts are filed with the intermediate appellate court Differs from trial court –Reviews record of events from the trial –Determine whether error in law or procedure occurred –No testimony or exhibits are reviewed –Court decides whether reversal or modification in verdict is warranted

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 12 Court System: Court of Last Resort Supreme court is the highest level court. Except for New York –Trial court is called supreme court –Highest appeal court is court of appeals Supreme court hears appeals from intermediate appellate courts It is rare, but possible for litigants to bring case directly to supreme court

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 13 Court System: U.S. Supreme Court Hears appeals from federal courts of appeals and highest state courts Cases involve –U.S. Constitution –Federal statutes, rules, or regulations Court decides cases to hear by granting a Writ of Certiorari –Litigants apply to have court hear their appeal –U.S. Supreme Court grants small percentage of these writs each year

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 14 Court Rules Legislatures authorize courts to establish rules of procedure Courts have the force of law Court, its personnel, and parties to case must follow court rules These rules prescribe or direct certain actions Most state’s court rules mirror federal rules

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 15 Court Rules At federal level, U.S. Supreme Court issues rules for all federal court proceedings Rules for criminal procedure govern criminal cases Rules of evidence govern admission or exclusion of evidence –Special rules exist for paper-based as well as electronic records (including health records) Rules of civil procedure govern civil cases

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 16 Court Rules: Civil Procedure and Evidence Rules Important for HIM professionals Civil procedure rules prescribe –How trial will proceed –Discovery process: depositions, interrogatories, production of documents, etc. –Subpoena process Evidence rules deal with –Privilege (e.g., doctor-patient, attorney-client) –Testimony (e.g., expert testimony in medical case) –Hearsay (e.g., introduction of health records) –Authentication and identification

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 17 Stages of a Lawsuit: The Legal Process

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 18 Beginning the Lawsuit Parties –Plaintiff: person who initiates the lawsuit –Defendant: person sued by the plaintiff –Additional parties may also be present Complaint: plaintiff files a written document with the court that describes –Jurisdiction of court to hear the case –Plaintiff’s claim and demand for relief or damages

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 19 Beginning the Lawsuit Service of process: –Delivery of complaint and summons issued by court upon defendant Defendant response: the answer –Denial of allegations or affirmative defenses –Make counterclaims against plaintiff –Limited time to file answer (20 days) –May also file motions to dismiss lawsuit or for summary judgment

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 20 Discovery Tools used to obtain facts and information about the case Each side seeks information from other Federal rules of civil procedure govern process (or state rules in state court) When information is in electronic form, process is called e-discovery

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 21 Discovery Methods Deposition: testimony under oath outside the court room Interrogatories: written questions answered under oath Production of documents/things: inspection or copying of physical evidence Physical or Medical Examination: court may order with good cause

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 22 E-Discovery Electronically-stored information (ESI) Rules of procedure revised in 2006 to address ESI Distinct category of information – s and web pages –Word processing files and databases –Discs, flash/thumb drives, back-up media

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 23 E-Discovery: ESI is Unique Volume: large number of relevant documents Variety of sources: documents in multiple places Dynamic quality: ability to change data Hidden information: metadata/embedded data Reliance on systems: if removed from system may not be understandable Deletion: ESI may be recovered even if deleted

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 24 E-Discovery: Significant Issues In what form or format should ESI be produced? Will ESI production result in undue burden? Will production of metadata cause detriment? Do computer operations need to change to preserve ESI? Will production of ESI waive privilege? Is modification or destruction of ESI considered spoliation? Will sanctions be imposed?

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 25 E-Discovery: Preservation of Information Spoliation: wrongful destruction/alteration of evidence Duty to preserve ESI Litigation hold: –Actions to prevent routine destruction –Duty to preserve may be triggered before a lawsuit if filed –Opposing party may advise of intent to sue Order of preservation –Temporary order to preserve evidence

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 26 Legal Process: Next Steps Pre-trial conference: –Meeting with judge before trial –Discuss status of case and settlement options –Outstanding motions may be ruled upon Trial –Hearing or determination of issues –Judge decides issues of law –Jury decides issues of fact –Determination of whether plaintiff proved her case

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 27 Legal Process: After Trial Appeal: –Losing party may seek a different outcome –Appellate court reviews trial –Court may affirm, modify, or reverse verdict Satisfying the judgment –Once appeals are exhausted, winning party may collect money award –Writ of execution: order to sheriff to take property of losing party

© 2010 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. 28 Alternative Dispute Resolution Methods to resolve conflicts without trial –Mediation: Voluntary use of neutral third party to decide case –Arbitration: Often mandatory, use of neutral third party to decide case Decision binding but parties may appeal –Negotiation and settlement: Parties work with attorneys to reach acceptable resolution