standard for proving the defendant liable in a civil court; "more likely than not"
Pretrial Conference
court's technique for pushing the case toward settlement or forcing the parties to prepare for trial
quasi in rem Jurisdiction
states often use it to obtain jurisdiction that stretches their power; comes under close scrutiny
Removal Doctrine
someone being sued in another person's state may have the case thrown out of that state's court system
Request for Production of Documents
Request that the other side produce certain requested documents that are relevant to the dispute at hand
Request for Admissions
Written set of facts that one party request the other to admit as being true
Rule of Fours
writ is issued whenever four justices vote to review the case in secret proceedings
Standing
ability of a party to provide sufficient evidence of harm or connection of the other party to the law in question
Subject Matter Jurisdiction
subject matter of the dispute; federal courts have limited jurisdiction based on what the case is covering; may cover cases with federal questions or diversity of citizenship
Summons
also called a citation; having someone get served, being summoned to court
United States Supreme Court
court of last resort for all federal cases; jurisdiction dictated by Congress