Requests for admission are not often used, but can be a very powerful tool. They ask a party to admit or deny certain facts pertaining to the case, and they carry with them penalties for not answering, for answering falsely, or even answering late.
Document production is fairly self-explanatory. Any party has a right to see most documents that even arguably relate to a case. Particularly in more complex medical malpractice or product defect cases, the documents involved can be voluminous. Increasingly, courts are allowing access to computer files as part of document discovery. In cases where enough is at stake to justify it, courts have even allowed litigants to reconstruct deleted files like e-mail , although that practice has not yet become common.
Depositions are sworn statements, when a person will answer questions from an attorney, and a court reporter will make a transcript of all that is said. Depositions can range in length from an hour to a week or more. Your attorney will tell you what he or she wants from you if you are deposed, but there are two general things to remember. First, never guess. The purpose of a deposition is to give facts, not to speculate as to what might have happened.
Second, it is human nature to want to explain things so that your listener understands, but you should resist the impulse. It is your job to answer only the question asked, not to offer additional information. Summary judgment may be appropriate if the relevant facts are not in dispute and the only question is how the law should be applied to those facts. In such cases, there is no need for a jury or judge to hear witnesses or view evidence regarding what happened.
All that is left for the court to do is to apply the law to the undisputed facts, without a trial. If the court is uncertain whether a genuine factual issue exists, it will deny the summary judgment motion and the case will proceed to trial.
For example, in most divorce cases a trial judge reaches a decision after hearing allegations from both sides of the dispute, and enters a judgment that may favor one spouse on one issue child custody , and the other spouse as to another issue alimony. There is a tremendous amount of legal advocacy that has to happen to get a civil rights complaint past all of the layers of government official immunity, evidence sufficiency, and other challenges before a court will allow a civil rights claimant to tell their story at trial.
We typically practice in federal court while advocating for federal civil rights. Even when we have state claims, they often involve constitutional rights violations, which are a federal in nature and therefore would go to a federal court. We practice in the state of Colorado and there is a federal courthouse in downtown Denver. During the covid crisis, most court matters are being handled remotely but will eventually return to the federal courthouse.
Many claims have a statute of limitations so time is of the essence. Call the Civil Rights Litigation Group at or use our online contact form to schedule your free consultation with us today. Making a civil rights claim against the police in Denver.
Civil rights and what makes a good case in Denver, Colorado. Your lawyer can object to certain requests if they are overbroad, irrelevant, or ask for privileged information. It is important, however, to share all relevant documents with your attorney even if they will not all be produced to the other side. These are written questions that you must answer under oath. Your attorney will ask you for information then help you write the responses.
Again, your attorney can object to certain questions or try to limit the answers if appropriate. Requests for admissions. This is a document that sets forth specific facts and asks you to admit or deny them. Sometimes these are straightforward and involve facts that are not really in dispute. In this case, the requests for admissions save time in discovery by establishing baseline facts. Other times they are a more strategic effort to get you to admit facts that are harmful to your case.
Your lawyer will review these carefully with you and object where appropriate. These usually happen after all of the written requests above are answered. A deposition is a form of testimony, but happens outside of court. As plaintiff, you will have to give deposition testimony. Your deposition is extremely important to your case, so you should plan to spend time with your lawyer preparing for it.
The deposition itself usually happens at the office of the other side's attorney. You can expect to be in a conference room with their lawyer, your lawyer, and the court reporter. Sometimes someone from the other side attends the deposition, but this is not the norm. You should plan for the deposition to last all day, though sometimes they are shorter. How much does litigation cost?
If you are paying your lawyer by the hour, this can vary widely. It is a good idea to check in with your lawyer on a regular basis for an estimate of what is coming up. You can also discuss with your lawyer a budget for the different pieces of discovery.
There are some things the attorney simply has to do in order to meet his or her professional obligations, but they should be open to a conversation about how much time is spent. If you have a contingent fee agreement with your lawyer, you will not be paying for the lawyer's time unless and until you recover compensation, either in a judgment or through a settlement.
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