MGMT 211 Lecture 6 Outline of Last Lecture I. Chapter 3 Continued: Texas Court SystemII. Federal Court Systema. Constitutional Court SystemIII. Supreme CourtOutline of Current Lecture I. Chapter 3 Continueda. Territorial jurisdiction and subject matter jurisdiction to hear a caseb. Territorial Jurisdiction in detailII. Chapter 4a. ContractsCurrent LectureI. Chapter 3 Continueda. A court must have both types of jurisdiction to hear your case; subject matter jurisdiction and territorial jurisdictionb. Territorial jurisdictioni. Court has to be able to make the litigants come to their court1. Civil case: they have to make defendant come to their courtii. General rule: you can always sue a defendant where the defendant lives1. Do you want to sue someone where they live, or make them cometo you? You have “home-field advantage”.2. It may be different where they livea. Judge friend went to El Paso and shows up at 8:30 to start; he is always on time, and people in El Paso are not on timeiii. You can’t proceed with a lawsuit until you’ve served the defendant with process1. Service of process: process server (anyone approved by court) walks up to you, ask if you are so-and-so, you say yes, and they hand you a packet2. From the day of service, you only have a certain amount to file an answera. If not, plaintiff can go to court take a default judgment against you and get everything they’re asking foriv. If people know they will be sued, they are going to avoid process serving1. Texas allows different methods of servicea. Certified mail, with return receipt requested that defendant is the only one who signsi. If they see it’s from district/county clerk, they don’ttake it and have not been servedv. What if you altogether don’t want to be served?1. If they are trying to hide out, you must try one of first 22. Process server will then file an affidavit that they are avoiding he/she3. Then, different waysa. Nail papers to front doorb. Can serve someone over the age of 14i. Can serve your roommateii. If you miss the deadline because of them, you’re still liablec. Can print it in the newspaperi. If it comes out in hometown paper that you’re suedfor paternity, mom may find out before paper comes to front doorii. Has to run several times before day of service declared4. Once you’ve been served, you’ve been servedvi. Can’t ordinarily serve someone outside of Texas1. Exceptions: long-armed jurisdictional statutea. Interstate compact agreements between statesb. Still closely watched by federal peoplec. Example: you drive to LSU and you have a wreck in Boudreaux Parish, you can be served there because you used their roads without paying for themi. You are giving them jurisdictiond. Dad skips out to Maine and doesn’t pay child support, mom can sue him in Maine 2. In rem jurisdiction: “over the thing” – over the subject matter of the lawsuita. Whatever the lawsuit is about is in that statei. Grandma dies in Minnesota, left you a dairy farmii. You never went to Minnesota and know dairy farming is hardiii. Call real estate agent and ask to selliv. All but land sold, 3 years go by and you haven’t paid Minnesota taxes on itv. Minnesota can due you for back due taxes because land (subject matter) is in Minnesota3. Quasi in rema. Probably doesn’t exist anymore; states got greedyb. You have right to own property in Texas and other states byFederal law and Constitutioni. If a state interferes with right, violation of due processc. States trying to take any property you have and hold it as ransom, saying you’ve been sued there and you must come defend the lawsuiti. If you lose, we sell your propertyii. Feds told them that’s not okd. Minimal contacts rule: lawsuit and property seized have to have minimal contacti. Courts = “interrelated”e. Probably won’t workvii. Who hears the case1. Venue: geographical location of all courts that have jurisdiction that will hear your casea. Criminal: where did the crime occuri. Change of venue motions: lawyer feels clienthas been convicted in the newspapers1. Boy murder in Lubbock, had been abused, beaten2. Change of venue because everyone wanted him to pay; move to Wichita Fallsb. Civil: you can sue a defendant where the defendant livesi. You don’t want to do thatii. Exceptions1. Corporations: you can sue them:a. Where the registered agent isb. Where they’re headquartered – won’t work if out of statec. Any county where they do businessi. Some counties are known as benevolent, and you want to go thereii. Was Matagorda Countyiii. Forum shopping: look for County that would give you your desired answeriv. Forum non-convenes rule: if you get taken to a countythat has nothing to do with the lawsuit, you can challenge it and say it’s not the most convenient forum for all partiesiii. Not always going to be where you want itiv. Court has to have jurisdiction and proper court of venue2. Continue with lawsuita. Starts with plaintiff filing the lawsuitb. Next, defendant served with processc. Begins pleadings phasei. Pleadings, Discovery, Pre-trial, Trial and Appellateii. Pleadings: getting papers in orders, filing motions, objections, petitions; only certain amount of time1. Civil rules of federal procedure not adopted by Texas: day you’ve been served, add 20 days, next Monday at 10am2. Can last months/yearsiii. Discovery: Trying to discover what other side has on you/show them what you have on them1. Deposition: you order witness to appear at certain location where they’re sworn in and questioneda. Expensive: pay attorney to be there, travel expenses, witness for time, pay court reporter, have to have copiesb. Sets the person’s testimonyc. Wants to use their locked in testimony against them, or to save it in case of emergency – you could possibly died. Expensive, but invaluable2. Interrogatory: limited to a party of the lawsuit; written questions sent to a party of the lawsuit asking for answers they file with the courta. “pattern interrogatories” – may not always apply to the case; harassment caseb. Limited interrogatory: 2 sets with 20 answers each; only certain questions3. Request for admissions: make them admit entire lawsuit; unlimited; can only go to party4. Then, walk into pre-trial, ask for summary judgment motion (look at pleadings and discovery) and judge can end case5. Judgment is not equal to money or results6. Motion for discovery: get paperwork, documentation, things you can look ata. Other side