Civil Flashcards
When a party serves a pleading by mail, what effect does that have on the time in which the other party has to reply to the pleading?
The other party has an additional three days in which to respond.
If a party learns of an affirmative defense after filing a pleading, what action must the party take to prevent waiver of the defense? When must the party take this action?
The party must file an amendment to the pleading by the deadline established by the pretrial scheduling order or, if none, more than seven days prior to trial.
What action must a defendant take to reply to the substance of a plaintiff’s petition? By when must the defendant take this action?
The defendant must file an answer by 10:00 a.m. on the first Monday after the expiration of 20 days from the date the defendant was served with process.
If a defendant objects to the personal jurisdiction of the court over the defendant, what action must the defendant take, and by when?
The defendant must file a special appearance by a sworn motion before the deadline for filing an answer and as the first pleading the case; the facts must be verified by affidavit
A defendant wants to add a person as a party who may be liable to the plaintiff for all or part of the original plaintiff’s claim against the defendant. What action must the defendant take?
The defendant must serve a third-party petition/complaint on the person.
A defendant wants the court to consider the liability of a non-party for all or part of the original plaintiff’s claim against the defendant but does not want to add that person as a party. What action must the defendant take?
The defendant must file a motion for leave to designate the person as a responsible third party (RTP).
What limits apply to methods of discovery under Level 2 discovery, the default discovery control plan
Each party is limited to 25 written interrogatories, excluding interrogatories asking a party to identify or authenticate specific documents. Each side is limited to 50 hours to examine and cross-examine opposing parties, experts, and other party witnesses in oral deposition.
What are the five discovery methods available to a party?
1) Requests for admission, disclosure, and production or inspection of documents or tangible things;
2) Requests and motions for entry upon and examination of real property;
3) Interrogatories to a party;
4) Oral or written depositions; and
5) Motions for mental or physical examinations.
A party seeks information from another party in electronic or magnetic form. How can a party obtain this information in this form?
The party must specifically request production of electronic or magnetic data and specify the form in which the requesting party wants it produced. The responding party must provide the information in electronic or magnetic form if it is reasonably available to the responding party in its ordinary course of business.
A party’s attorney takes a witness’s statement as well as taking notes as the witness makes the statement. May another party obtain the statement and the notes?
The requesting party may obtain the witness’s statement without any special showing of need, but may not obtain the notes because they are protected work product.
Can a party discover the opinions of a designated expert witness of another party, and if so, by what methods?
Yes, a party may obtain the opinions of a testifying expert witness by:
1) A request for disclosure; or
2) A deposition.
When may a party who fails to amend a discovery response in a timely manner introduce at trial the undisclosed information or offer the testimony of a nonparty witness who was not previously identified?
When the court determines that:
1) There was good cause for the failure; or
2) The failure will not unfairly surprise or prejudice the other parties.
A party has responded to a discovery request by stating the information sought is privileged. What can the party seeking discovery do to obtain information regarding the privilege, and how must the other party respond?
The requesting party can serve a written request for a description of the withheld materials. Within 15 days of the service of that request, the party asserting the privilege must prepare a privilege log that describes the withheld information and asserts a specific privilege.
A party may request disclosure of ten categories of information without regard to the other party’s objection or assertion of work product. What are those categories?
1) The correct names of the parties;
2) The name, address, and telephone numbers of potential parties and persons having knowledge of the relevant facts;
3) Legal and factual grounds for the claim or defenses;
4) Amount of and any method for calculating economic damages;
5) Indemnity or insurance agreements;
6) Settlement agreements;
7) Witness statements;
8) Medical records and bills or, in lieu thereof, an authorization permitting the disclosure by another person of such medical records and bills;
9) The name, address, and telephone numbers of any responsible third party; and
10) Discoverable information regarding a testifying expert
What objections may be made to questions posed at a deposition?
Objectons can be made only to leading questions (“Objection, leading”) and the form of questions (“Objection, form”).`
