Civil Procedure - An Overview

Broadly speaking, civil procedure consists of the rules by which courts conduct civil trials. "Civil trials" concern the judicial resolution of claims by one individual or group against another and is to be distinguished from "criminal trials," in which the state prosecutes an individual for violation of criminal law.

Contingencies to Include in Your House Purchase Contract

Criminal procedure also brings balance to criminal law because the ultimate ends of criminal law are dual, conflicting, or contradictory -- to acquit the innocent AND to convict the guilty. It's difficult to set up any kind of machinery of justice that accomplishes both these goals. The easier you make it to prove guilt, the more difficult it is to establish innocence.

Property Rights: My Neighbor is a Nuisance

In the early days of this country, land was abundant and neighbors were distant. As the population began to grow and urban areas increased, the courts were called upon to resolve property disputes. One of the very first judge-made doctrines applied to property disputes in the United States, the law of nuisance, was inherited from England. This doctrine still finds its way into property disputes today. At the risk of oversimplification, this doctrine is generally raised when a neighboring property owner is acting in a manner that can be described as a nuisance.

Real property: Land Law - an Overview

These rules govern the procedure in the United States district courts in all suits of a civil nature whether cognizable as cases at law or in equity or in admiralty, with the exceptions stated in Rule 81. They shall be construed and administered to secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action.