| Federal Rules of Evidence |
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| In a lawsuit, both the plaintiff (the party suing) and the defendant (the party being sued) introduce evidence during the trial. Evidence refers to something submitted to the court to prove or disprove the truth of a factual matter being weighed by the court. More... |
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| The Common Law and Judicial Precedent |
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| The common law developed from unwritten English law, which was based on tradition and custom. English common law is the basis for federal law and the law of all states, except Louisiana (whose law is based on the Napoleonic Code or the French Civil Code). The most important characteristic of common law is that it is judge-made law rather the law derived from constitutions, statutes, regulations and ordinances, which are legislative enactments. Under the common law system, current cases are decided using the precedents established by past judicial decisions. More... |
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| Grounds for Sanctioning State Judges |
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| Judges are subject to standards of judicial conduct. Their actions are required to conform to certain norms and standards that relate to impartiality and ethical behavior. There are codes of judicial conduct for both state and federal judges. This article discusses cases in which state judges have been sanctioned or removed for ethical violations. More... |
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| Declaratory Judgments |
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| Laws have been adopted that give both the state courts and the federal courts the power to declare or define the legal rights, duties, obligations, or status of the parties involved in a dispute. In a declaratory judgment suit, the court does not award any damages and does not order either party to do anything.
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| Juvenile Courts |
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| A juvenile court is a specialized civil court dealing with children who are under the age of 18 who are abused, neglected, dependent, delinquent, and status offenders. Some juvenile courts also have the power to require treatment for mentally ill or developmentally disabled children. The goal of the juvenile justice system is to rehabilitate the juvenile. The juvenile court makes use of social service programs. There are important differences between juvenile courts and other civil courts. Juvenile hearings are usually closed to the public so that the juvenile's privacy is protected. A juvenile has no right to request a trial by jury. Juveniles cannot post bail in order to be released from detention. The probation officers involved in the juvenile justice system are court employees. They conduct evaluations and prepare reports to aid the juvenile judges in deciding a case. They also supervise juveniles who are placed on probation and report on the progress of juveniles on probation. More... |
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