Legal Environment of Business: Chapter 4

cope of Discovery (essay) How do abusive discovery practices raise the cost of litigation?

-time spent searching for and compiling relevant documents -time, expense and aggravation of preparing for and attending depositions -costs of copying and shipping documents -attorneys fees generated in interpreting discovery requests

_____ aids trial preparation by permitting the parties to learn how a witness will answer questions prior to actual questioning at the trial.

Discovery -Discovery aids trial preparation by permitting the parties to learn how a witness will answer questions prior to actual questioning at the trial.

Which of the following is a method where either party may request the other to declare that certain issues presented in the pleadings are no longer in dispute?

Request for admission -After some of the methods of discovery are used, either party may request the other to declare that certain issues presented in the pleadings are no longer in dispute. The request for an admission narrows some issues and makes settlement more likely.

Which of the following is true about the scope of discovery?

The party objecting to discovery is allowed to seek the judge's opinion. -The discovery procedures are intended to be used freely by the parties to litigation without the court's direct supervision. At times, a question about the scope of what is discoverable arises, and the party objecting to discovery seeks the judge's opinion. In this setting, a ruling must be given.

What is the purpose of a deposition?

To record and learn witness testimony. -Deposing all potential witnesses allows a party to learn more about the facts of their case, and who will be a helpful or harmful witness at trial. The testimony is recorded by a court reporter and thus is preserved in case a witness changes their testimony at trial.

Which of the following is true about the discovery procedure?

When the party objecting to discovery seeks the judge's opinion, a ruling must be given. -When a question about the scope of what is discoverable arises, and the party objecting to discovery seeks the judge's opinion, a ruling must be given.

Steps in Discovery (essay) (a)Why do surprises rarely occur at trial? (b)What are some of the key devices a litigant can use in discovery?

a) surprises rarely occur at trial because of the process of discovery. The discovery process ensures that each side is fully aware of all the facts involved in the case and the intentions of the party b)Some of the key devices a litigant can use in discovery include -Interrogations, which are a list of written questions to the opposing parties -a disposition, which is when the lawyer orally ask the potential witness questions about the case for an oral response

In a _____, the lawyer orally asks questions of the possible witness and an oral response is given.

deposition -In a deposition, the lawyer orally asks questions of the possible witness and an oral response is given.

To conduct discovery to the greatest extent possible, lawyers will want to take _____ of all potential witnesses.

depositions -To conduct discovery to the greatest extent possible, the lawyers will want to take depositions of all potential witnesses.

The pretrial process of discovery is intended to:

ensure that both litigants are aware of all the facts involved in the case. -Discovery is intended to take the surprise out of litigation by ensuring that everyone has access to the same facts, and narrow the disputed issues. This process allows both parties to learn about the strengths and weaknesses of their case.

Discovery procedures are intended to be used by the parties to litigation:

freely without the court's direct supervision. - the discovery procedures are intended to be used freely by the parties to litigation without the court's direct supervision. At times, a question about the scope of what is discoverable arises, and the party objecting to discovery seeks the judge's opinion.

Which of the following is true about information sought in discovery?

if the information sought in discovery is discoverable, an objection will be overruled. -There is a rule that as long as the information sought in discovery will lead to evidence admissible during the trial, the information is discoverable and an objection is overruled.

Evidence is discoverable only if it:

is likely to lead to admissible evidence in court. -The scope of discoverable information is broad. Generally, so long as the requested information is likely to lead to admissible evidence during the trial, the information is discoverable.

If a party fails to produce relevant, requested evidence during discovery, the party seeking the information may file a _____ with the court.

motion to compel discovery -A motion to compel discovery is the proper mechanism to ask the court to require that the opposing party produce the requested discovery evidence.

A request for production of documents is preceded by:

receiving answers to the interrogatories. -After answers to the interrogatories are received, either party might ask the other to produce specific documents, called request for production of documents.