Civil Law Unit 4 Lesson 4

Warm-up 1. What makes someone sue another person or a business? (What situation would lead to it?) 2. What is the purpose of suing someone?

Objective  After class today, you should be able to describe the purpose of civil trials.

People involved 1. Plaintiff: A person who brings charges in civil court. 2. Defendant: A person who is charged with a civil wrong-doing.

Reasons for a civil court case 3. Breach of Contract: When one of the parties involved in a contract does not maintain their part of the agreement.

Reasons for a civil court case 4. Tort: A situation that causes injury or financial loss to a person, which may have been the fault/responsibility of another person/group.

For a defendant to be found responsible in a tort case they must have displayed 5. Negligence: Not acting in a way that a reasonable person would be expected to act.

In order to win, one side must demonstrate a 6. Preponderance of the evidence: what most likely happened based on what the evidence shows.

What you get from winning a civil case 7. Damages: The amount of money the court decides to reward a plaintiff for their losses.

The jury that makes a ruling 8. Petit Jury: A group of 6-12 people that decide if the defendant is responsible for the plaintiff's losses. The side with a majority of jury votes wins the case.

How you could resolve your problem WITHOUT going to court 9. Out of Court Settlement: An agreement made between the parties involved in a lawsuit to resolve the case without going to court.

Multiple Choice Practice 1. Which of these types of cases would be tried as a civil case? A.kidnapping B.lawsuit C.shoplifting D.traffic violation

Multiple Choice Practice 2. Which of these terms is used to describe a party who files a civil lawsuit? A.prosecutor B.defendant C.plaintiff D.mediator