Child Custody And Divorce: Free Legal Advice
Child Custody And Divorce: Free Legal Advice
Child Custody And Divorce: Free Legal Advice
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You have seen a trial in the movies. You have seen a trial on television. Trials are not like that, really. An example of a real trial would be the O.J. Simpson trial, which ran for months and months. Examples of unreal trials would be Perry Mason, or Murder One, in which the so-called "witnesses" are immediately classified as good guys or bad guys, the result of the trial is that justice is done (that's good), or justice is not done (that's bad), and we, the audience, can tell the difference. Oh, and we can do it in ninety minutes. With, or without, the popcorn.
What the movies don't show is the work . For each hour of testimony, in a real trial, there are at least two hours of work that has been done, beforehand, by somebody, and several things need to be brought to your attention:
1. The work needs to be done well in advance.
2. The work needs to be done over and over, to insure accuracy.
3. The other side gets to know everything you are doing. There are no (or damn few)
surprises, in real life trials. The flip side of that is that you get to know everything
the other side is doing, in getting ready for their trial, because they send you notices,
in the same way that you send notice to them. This does, however, generate more work.
4. You are paying for all this. By the hour.
The beauty of the O.J. Simpson trial is that it was honest, it wasn't some work of art. It wasn't a show, it was an ordeal. You gained a lot, in education, just by watching. If you didn't know that lawyers get tired, or that some doctors are idiots, or that eyewitnesses don't know things that they should, well, you know now. It could never happen in a well-run movie, could it?
The essence of a trial, or other hearing, is fairness. The rules are publicly laid out, and your lawyer likely has memorized all of the rules. As to those that he hasn't memorized, he knows pretty much what they say, and where to find them (in a book titled, of all things, Michigan Court Rules, which every lawyer brings to every trial), and how to use them.
You need to know about these Court Rules, for this reason: if you follow the rules, every last little nit-picky one of them, you will have a trial. If you do not follow the rules, just one little inconsequential Court Rule, you may have your case tossed out of court. Really. Now that doesn't mean that you're not going to get divorced (but it may, if you filed the case improperly), but it does mean that the other side gets to present their case, and you don't get to present your case. Kind of one-sided, eh? And who do you think will win, in that situation?
These rules grew up out of history, and they are not likely to be changed, just for you, or just because you would like them to be changed. Each is there to solve a particular problem, and, for the most part, the rules of procedure and evidence do solve the problem. The rules can be difficult, and the rules can be harsh. But they are the rules, and they are going to be followed. That guarantees a fair system of justice (but it reminds me a lot of the sign that you see on walls in some employee lounges: "The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves".(Smile).
Let's look at an example:
1. Back in Chapter 11, we saw a deposition of a county personnel director, and the deposition was done to establish that one party had a certain number of years of employment. (If you want to review it, click here).That testimony was taken down by a court reporter, and one lawyer wants very much to introduce that evidence into the case (which means to show it to the judge, and have the judge consider the evidence. We say that we want that ADMITTED into evidence.) He really wants to get into evidence both the testimony and copies of the records that the guy brought with him to the deposition. You can see that this is an important witness.
But there is a pretrial order, that was issued early in the case, probably a year before the trial is scheduled. That order is for the convenience of everyone, and schedules certain important dates, that is, it sets some rules, which have to be followed by both sides. That order provides that:
"1. Both sides will file a witness list with the court clerk on or before June 1st.
"2. Both sides may conduct discovery until September 1st.
"3. Both sides will file with the clerk a FINAL witness list, and a list of exhibits, on or before November 1st.
"4. The trial will be held on December 15th.
"(signed) Judge Mailer"
Can you see that this is the essence of fairness? Both sides have the same deadlines, both sides will be putting the other party on notice of which witnesses are going to be called at the trial, and both sides are going to provide a copy of any documents to be admitted into evidence TO THE OTHER SIDE, after the documents are listed, and the list filed with the clerk. There is a small little court rule that says that if one side files documents (any document) with the Court Clerk, that party will deliver a copy of that document to the other side. And further, the party will then file what's called a "proof of service" with the Court Clerk (and deliver a copy of THAT TOO to the other side). The court rule is not mentioned in that pretrial order, but it applies equally to both sides, and it will be followed. If it is not followed, then those documents are not going to be admitted into evidence. Period. In spite of the fact that you "really" need them admitted into evidence. You sure do. And no, they are not going to be admitted. Here's what a disaster sounds like in court click here.
So, you say, "Well, obviously I'm going to follow all the rules, I'm not going to be in that position. I wouldn't dream of trying to handle my own divorce, I'm not an idiot, I've hired a good lawyer, and I trust my lawyer."
That's fine. But now the point is made that there is a lot of work to do very early in the case.You and your lawyer have to get together and file that witness list on time, (before June 1st, right? Read the judge's pretrial order.), and when you get a copy from your lawyer of their witness list, you and your lawyer need to talk right away:
"Harry, who's this Melanie Griffith who's listed at number three on their witness list? Your former secretary? From a year ago? When did you let her go? Yes, I recognize the name of witness seven: he's Harry Ferares, a private investigator, one of the best. Yes, if he's listed on this list, they intend to call him as a witness, and he's probably going to kick your ass, if you were up to something with this former secretary of yours. Why didn't you mention it to me? Well, evidently they do know, and probably they've got pictures, maybe even video. You need to come in and meet with me, we need to take some depositions right away."
And, of course, you can take the depositions. If you do it before September 1st, right? Read the pretrial order.
So, I hope you can see that there is a lot of work to do, prior to getting to court. You can't just walk in and present testimony, or documentary evidence, that the other side hasn't seen. And, by the way, they can't do it to you. But at the final settlement conference, just before the trial, you already know what evidence they are going to present. They already know what evidence you are going to present. Do you want to try the case? Or do you want to accept their last offer?
Good luck with it.