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Chapter 3

Terms in this set (69)

In order for a court to render a binding decision in a case before it, the court must have
binds
courts, or courts of original jurisdiction, have the power to hear and decide cases when they first enter the legal system.
trial
A trial without a jury is called a
bench trial
in personam jurisdiction is a court's power to
render a decision affecting specific persons
The document that puts the defendant on notice of a complaint against them and explains how to respond is called a
summons
Complaints against corporations are generally served on:
an agent the corporation has appointed to receive service.
When a New York company sells a product that injures a resident of Kentucky, a Kentucky court can exercise personal jurisdiction over the New York defendant based upon
a state long-arm statute
A court may exercise in rem jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant who ______ within the state boundaries.
owns property
When a defendant receives a copy of a summons and complaint, a court has ______ over that defendant
jurisdiction
In the United States, each state has its own court system, but there is also a(n) Blank______ court system.
federal
Corporations are subject to in personam jurisdiction in all but which of the following locations?

A) The geographic areas in which they conduct business
B) The state of their incorporation
C) The state in which the plaintiff resides
D) The location of their main offices
c
n the federal court system, courts of original jurisdiction or federal trial courts are called Blank______ courts.

municipal
circuit
district
appellate
district
When both state and federal courts have authority to hear a particular type of case, jurisdiction is said to be: ______.

discordant
mutually exclusive
conditional
concurrent
concurrent
A court may exercise in rem jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant's property in order to ______.

pay property taxes
file criminal charges
pay social security
allow for federal claims
pay property taxes
A party who wishes to transfer a case from state to federal court must file a motion
to remove
When both the state and federal courts are empowered to hear a particular case, jurisdiction is said to be
concurrent
Venue is appropriate: ______.

only in the location where both the plaintiff and the defendant reside
in a location where neither the plaintiff nor the defendant resides
solely where the plaintiff resides
where the defendant reside
where the defendant resides
The federal court system has ______ jurisdiction in bankruptcy cases
exclusive
In a(n) ______ clause, the parties specify which court would hear a dispute over an alleged breach of the contract.

mandatory arbitration
choice of law
concurrent removal
forum-selection
forum-selection
Once a plaintiff files a case in the federal or state court system, the case remains in that system throughout the ______ process.
Multiple choice question.
appellate
The intermediate appellate courts in the federal system are identified by: _____.

lettered circuits
assigned districts
symbolic districts
numbered circuits
numbered circuits
A(n) ______ clause is inserted into the contract to specify which law will be applied to resolve any disputes that arise under the contract.

forum selection
choice-of-law
concurrent mediation
choice of venue
choice-of-law
United States district courts, as compared to bankruptcy courts or tax courts, are courts of ______ jurisdiction.
general
James claims a state statute preventing him from assembling in front of town hall to protest property taxes violates his First Amendment rights to assemble. Although John can challenge this statute in state court, the federal courts can also hear the challenge because it raises a(n):
federal question
A federal ______ court of appeals hears appeals from government administrative agencies.
circuit
The U.S. legal system has two ______ court structures: a federal system and a state system.
parallel
courts of appeal, analogous to federal circuit courts of appeal, exist in approximately half the states.
Intermediate
Almost every case in the federal court system begins in United States ______ court.
district
The circuit court of appeals that is the appropriate court for your appeal from the trial court depends on:
geography
The structure of the state court systems is very similar to the federal court system and, therefore, state courts of last resort can be likened to the:
U.S. Supreme Court
intermediate appellate courts in the various states are similar to the:
federal circuit courts of appeal
The requirements of standing, case or controversy, and ripeness ensure that courts hear only cases that genuinely require
adjudication
A party who is personally affected by another's failure to satisfy a legal obligation generally has ______ to pursue an action in court.
standing
The case or controversy requirement ensures that courts are not rendering decisions in disputes that are merely
hypothetical
State courts that cannot award large damage amounts are typically called
small claims courts
A case is ______ if a judge's decision is capable of affecting the parties immediately
ripe
Standing, case or controversy, and ripeness are know as ______ requirements.
threshold
Unlike the legal systems in other countries, the United States embraces a litigation system that relies on a neutral body to hear opposing sides of a case and come to a conclusion in favor of one party. This system is known as a(n) ______ system.
adversarial
The American legal system requires that a plaintiff have a(n) ______ in the outcome of the case because this stimulates the plaintiff to present the best possible case.
personal stake
If a legal dispute occurs between two small business owners, the most common first step in resolving that dispute is to:
negotiate
After failing to resolve a contract dispute with Big Corp., John decides to pursue a remedy in court. The first document John's attorney will file in court is called a
complaint
Certified mail, in many jurisdictions, can satisfy the state's rules for sufficient
service of process
John Jones, who owns a sole proprietorship, files a breach of contract lawsuit against a multi-million dollar corporation. Critics of the United States adversarial system of justice would suggest that the clear advantage in this lawsuit belongs to:
the corporation
John files a breach of contract complaint in court and serves that complaint according to the local rules for service of process on Big Corp. Big Corp., however, does not file its answer within the time required by the rules. In this situation, the court can issue a ______ judgment against Big Corp.
default
The first formal stage of a lawsuit is the ______ stage.
pleading
A defendant uses a(n) ______ when his answer admits that the facts contained in the complaint are accurate.
Multiple choice question.
affirmative defense
A motion to dismiss is also known as a(n)
demurrer
A formal request for a court to grant some relief during the litigation process, for example, to dismiss a case early, is called a
motion
if a defendant fails to raise an affirmative defense in the answer, the judge:
will likely not allow him to raise it during the trial
judges generally grant a(n) Blank______ only when it appears beyond a doubt that the plaintiff cannot prove any set of facts to justify granting the judgment she seeks.
Multiple choice question.
demurrer
Written questions that one party sends to the other to answer under oath are known as
depositions
On her drive to work, Abigail is involved in an automobile accident. Later on, she is sued by the other driver and, during the litigation, she receives a summons from the other driver's attorney to appear and answer questions. Abigail is most likely being asked to appear for a(n) Blank
deposition
A counterclaim filed by a defendant in a lawsuit requires that the plaintiff respond with a(
reply
If the plaintiff in a breach of contract case believes that the complaint and answer, taken together, justify judgment in his favor, the plaintiff may file a motion for:
judgment on the pleadings
After filing the initial pleadings and motions, the parties gather information from each other via:
discovery
When John realizes he is about to be sued for breach of his employment contract, he deletes all his emails, both private and employment-related. John is worried that his employer may see emails to a competitor sharing trade secrets. Under the rules of civil procedure, the court may later impose ______ on John for this behavior.
sanctions
What punitive action is a company likely to face if it fails to comply with discovery requests made during litigation?
An adverse-inference instruction to the jury
how many stages do trials have?
6
In 2006, the Federal Rules of Civil ______ were amended to reflect changes in technology, and parties are now required to make provisions for disclosure or discovery of electronically stored information.
Procedure
A trial set up by a jury selection firm to test jurors' reactions to attorneys' arguments and witnesses' testimony is known as:
a mock trial
The jury selection process is also known as:
voir dire
challenge allows a party to challenge potential jurors without giving a reason.
peremptory
Which party's attorney gets to have an opening statement in a civil trial?
Both
During his trial against Big Corp., John is called to the witness stand to answer questions posed by his own attorney. These questions are called:
direct examination
After the close of a plaintiff's case, the defendant often makes a motion for a(n)
directed verdict
An error of law made during a trial will only result in reversal if the error of law was
prejudicial
an order to the lower court to send the U.S. Supreme Court the record of the case
A writ of certiorari
If the appellate court concludes that the lower court's decision was correct but the remedy was inappropriate, it ______ the remedy.
modifies
The party filing the appeal is generally referred to as the ______ and the party defending the appeal is generally called the______.
appellant; appellee
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