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Legal proceeding is an activity that seeks to invoke the power of a tribunal in order to enforce a law. Although the term may be defined more broadly or more narrowly as circumstances require, it has been noted that "[t]he termlegal proceedings includes proceedings brought by or at the instigation of a public authority, and anappeal against the decision of a court or tribunal".[1] Legal proceedings are generally characterized by an orderly process in which participants or their representatives are able to presentevidence in support of their claims, and to argue in favor of particularinterpretations of the law, after which ajudge,jury, or othertrier of fact makes a determination of the factual and legal issues.[2]
In theUnited States,Congressional hearings are not generally considered legal proceedings, as they are generally not directed towards the imposition of a penalty against a specific individual for a specific wrong. However,impeachment proceedings are generally conducted as legal proceedings, although experts dispute the question of whether they are primarily legal proceedings, or are merely political proceedings dressed in legal formalities and language.[4]Richard Posner, for example, has asserted that it was "the intent of the framers of the Constitution that an impeachment proceeding be primarily a legal proceeding, akin to a criminal prosecution, rather than a political one".[5]
Alegal case is in a general sense a dispute between opposing parties which may be resolved by acourt, or by some equivalent legal process. A legal case is typically based on eithercivil orcriminal law. In most legal cases, there are one or moreaccusers and one or moredefendants. In some instances, a legal case may occur between parties that are not in opposition, but require a legal ruling to formally establish some legal facts.
A civil case, more commonly known as alawsuit orcontroversy, begins when a plaintifffiles a document called acomplaint with a court, informing the court of the wrong that theplaintiff has allegedly suffered because of thedefendant, and requesting aremedy. The remedy sought may be money, aninjunction, which requires the defendant to perform or refrain from performing some action, or adeclaratory judgment, which determines that the plaintiff has certain legal rights. The remedy will be prescribed by the court if the plaintiff wins the case. A civil case can also be arbitrated througharbitration, which may result in a faster settlement, with lower costs, than could be obtained by going through a trial.
The plaintiff must make a genuine and timely effort to inform the defendant of the case against them throughservice of process, by which the plaintiff delivers to the defendant the same documents that the plaintiff filed with the court. For example, in a UK case in 2009, documents had not been served on the defendant promptly due to uncertainty about the defendant's official address for purposes of service of documents. Thecourt refused to extend the time for service of proceedings because of delay on the part of the plaintiff.[6]
At any point during a case, the parties can agree to asettlement, which will end the case, although in some circumstances, such as inclass actions, a settlement requires court approval in order to be binding.
Cases involving separation including asset division, support (also known as maintenance or alimony), and matters related to children are handled differently in different jurisdictions. Often, the court's procedure for dealing with family cases is very similar to that of a civil case (it requires service and disclosure, and will issue judgments).
Divorce and separation from a spouse is one of the most stressful situations, as rated by theHolmes and Rahe Stress Scale, and so family proceedings are increasingly being "divorced" from the often very formal and impersonal process of civil proceedings, and given special treatment.
Acriminal case, incommon law jurisdictions, begins when a person suspected of a crime isindicted by a grand jury or otherwise charged with the offense by a government official called aprosecutor ordistrict attorney.
A criminal case may in some jurisdictions be settled before atrial through aplea bargain. Typically, in a plea bargain, the defendant agrees to plead guilty to a lesser charge than that which was originally brought by the grand jury or prosecutor. A defendant who goes to trial risks greater penalties than would normally be imposed through a plea bargain.
Legal cases, whether criminal or civil, are premised on the idea that a dispute will be fairly resolved when alegal procedure exists by which the dispute can be brought to a factfinder not otherwise involved in the case, who can evaluateevidence to determine the truth with respect to claims of guilt, innocence, liability, or lack of fault. Details of the procedure may depend on both the kind of case and the kind of system in which the case is brought – whether, for example, it is aninquisitorial system or a solo
In most systems, the governing body responsible for overseeing the courts assigns a unique number/letter combination or similar designation to each case in order to track the various disputes that are or have been before it.[citation needed] The outcome of the case is recorded, and can later be reviewed by obtaining a copy of the documents associated with the designation previously assigned to the case.
However, it is often more convenient to refer to cases – particularly landmark and other notable cases – by a title of the formClaimantv Defendant (e.g.Arkell v Pressdram). Where a legal proceeding does not have formally designated adverse parties, a form such asIn re,Re orIn the matter of is used (e.g.In re Gault).[7] The "v" separating the parties is an abbreviation of the Latinversus, but, when spoken inCommonwealth countries, it is normally rendered as "and" or "against" (as in, for example,Charles Dickens'Jarndyce and Jarndyce). Where it is considered necessary to protect the anonymity of anatural person, some cases may have one or both parties replaced by a standard pseudonym (Jane Roe inRoe v. Wade) or by an initial (D v D). In titles such asR v Adams, however, the initial "R" is usually an abbreviation for the LatinRex orRegina, i.e. forthe Crown. (For an explanation of other terms that may appear in case titles, see theGlossary of legal terms.)
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