Chapter 3 Court Procedure 3 1 Tracy and Spencer were in a car accident on New Year s Eve a If Spencer files a petition in Missouri state court naming Tracy as a defendant what has he really done b What does it mean that Spencer must attempt to state a cause of action in his petition See Chapter One Basic Definitions in your notes What should Tracy s lawyer do if Spencer does not allege all of the points necessary for a valid cause of action 3 2 If the defendant files a motion to dismiss a petition filed in Missouri Circuit Court what is the defendant asking the court to do List and explain four valid reasons for a motion to dismiss 3 3 Wallace sues The Bruce in Missouri Circuit Court a When Bruce is served with a petition and summons what is he required to do b What will probably happen if Bruce fails in this requirement c What happens in the lawsuit if Bruce can t be found to be served with a summons 3 4 Identify the method of discovery being used in the following scenarios a Stanley is suing his boss Michael for assault claiming Michael tickled him at work Michael denies all claims Stanley s attorney sends a document containing the following to Michael s attorney Please list the names of people whom you know to have knowledge of the tickling incident Please provide both the names and addresses of all those listed b Meredith is suing her boss Michael for intentional infliction of emotional distress claiming Michael taunted her publicly and posted private pictures of her on the office bulletin board Michael denies all claims Meredith and Michael s attorneys agree to meet to question Meredith and Michael under oath about the case c Pam is suing her boss Michael for discrimination based on sex Michael denies all claims Pam s attorney sends several written statements to Michael s attorney including the following You admit that you harassed plaintiff called her a wimpy girl and said she could never be a salesman Michael s attorney denies all statements d In the previous scenario if Pam wants to force fellow employees to provide evidence which form of discovery must she use 3 5 Please list the stages of a lawsuit and briefly describe what happens at each phase 3 6 Carissa is suing Dr Hauser for medical malpractice in Columbia Missouri During her deposition and later during the presentation of her case Carissa testifies that Hauser failed to ask her questions about allergies As a result Hauser prescribed a medication to Carissa which unknown to Carissa contained a drug to which she was highly allergic Carissa lost the ability to breathe was rushed to the hospital and barely survived Carissa s attorney presents her case without a medical expert thinking this is one of those obvious cases like amputating the wrong leg where medical testimony is unnecessary a Hauser s lawyer did research before trial and she found a case in which the Missouri Supreme Court reviewing a similar situation set a precedent which required a doctor s opinion on both negligence and causation of injury due to negligence None of the people Carissa has identified as potential witnesses have a medical degree so none of the depositions or discovery contain any medical proof of negligence What motion should Hauser s attorney file at this point to win the case without a trial Why b Assume instead that Hauser s attorney did not find the precedent of the Supreme Court until doing some research at night during the week of trial What motion could Hauser s attorney file during after Carissa presents her case to allow Hauser to win at that point What reasoning would support this motion c If Hauser s lawyer did not find the case until after trial what motions should she file then Why 3 7 How do opening statements differ from the closing arguments as to a when they occur in a trial and b what the attorney is allowed to say 3 8 In a jury trial the judge submits the case to a jury for a decision In a civil trial in Missouri if the jury finds the defendant liable based on a preponderance of the evidence more likely than not the plaintiff wins In a criminal trial however the jury must find the defendant guilty beyond reasonable doubt a Which standard makes it harder to prove the case b Why do you think this difference in standards exists c Do you agree with the difference Sample Multiple choice questions for this chapter to be answered as part of your homework 1 The Plaintiff wants to call new witnesses to contradict evidence produced by the Defendant during her case Plaintiff s new evidence would be the part of the trial called 1 Cross examination 2 Redirecting 3 Counter argument 4 Summation 5 Rebuttal 2 Which of the following is NOT part of the discovery process 1 Voir Dire 2 Requests for Admission 3 Requests for Production 4 Interrogatories 5 None they re all part of discovery 3 Which of the following is conducted without the responding participant s being under oath 1 Requests for admissions 2 Voir Dire 3 Interrogatories 4 Depositions 5 None all are under oath 4 Bruno Mars believes that the Red Hot Chili Peppers borrowed one of his melodies and put it in a song without permission Mars has already sued the Peppers over this particular issue and lost Their joint appearance at the Super Bowl reminds Mars he is dissatisfied so he files suit again over the same issue What will most likely happen 1 The court will refuse to retry the case citing double jeopardy 2 The court will refuse to retry the case citing Res Judicata 3 The court will retry the whole case to see if Mars has new evidence 4 The court will retry the case but only if a different judge presides 5 3 and 4 only 5 Beyonce s body guard developed skin cancer on his face Beyonce s has reason to believe it was caused by the type of Revlon makeup the bodyguard often wore The bodyguard doesn t want to sue Revlon Beyonce s wasn t affected but she is mad and wants to sue Revlon herself Why can t she 1 She doesn t meet the adjudication requirement 2 It is not a justiciable controversy 3 She lacks a setting to sue 4 She lacks standing to sue 5 None of the above are the correct reason 6 After filing a lawsuit and losing you appeal The Court of Appeals decides that the case should be sent back to the court of general jurisdiction so that it may rule on a particular legal issue it failed to address What word would the Appeals Court s use to send case back to the trial court 1 Affirm 2 Reverse 3 Vacate 4 Remand 5 Overruled