Legal proceeding is an activity that seeks to invoke the power of a tribunal in order to enforce a law. Although the term may be defined more broadly or more narrowly as circumstances require, it has been noted that "[t]he term legal proceedings includes proceedings brought by or at the instigation of a public authority, and an appeal against the decision of a court or tribunal". Legal proceedings are generally characterized by an orderly process in which participants or their representatives are able to present evidence in support of their claims, and to argue in favor of particular interpretations of the law, after which a judge , jury , or other trier of fact makes a determination of the factual and legal issues.
31-646: The Supreme Court of the Czech Republic ( Nejvyšší soud České republiky ) is the court of highest appeal for almost all legal cases heard in the Czech Republic . As set forth in the Constitution of the Czech Republic , however, cases of constitutionality , administrative law and political jurisdiction are heard by other courts . Along with the Supreme Administrative and Constitutional Court ,
62-464: A remedy . The remedy sought may be money, an injunction , which requires the defendant to perform or refrain from performing some action, or a declaratory judgment , which determines that the plaintiff has certain legal rights. The remedy will be prescribed by the court if the plaintiff wins the case. A civil case can also be arbitrated through arbitration , which may result in a faster settlement, with lower costs, than could be obtained by going through
93-430: A cease-and-desist letter, the recipient may seek a tactical advantage by instituting declaratory-judgment litigation in a more favorable jurisdiction. Sometimes the parties agree in advance of discussions that no declaratory-judgment lawsuit will be filed while the negotiations are continuing. Sometimes a lawsuit is filed, but not served, before sending such a notice, to preserve a jurisdiction advantage without engaging
124-439: A claim for declaratory judgment in a situation where a patent dispute may exist or develop, the claimant must establish that an actual controversy exists. If there is a substantial controversy of sufficient immediacy and reality, the court will generally proceed with the declaratory-judgment action. The court may even hear the action if the patentee has not filed a cease and desist letter. The standard for an actual controversy
155-419: A copy of the documents associated with the designation previously assigned to the case. However, it is often more convenient to refer to cases – particularly landmark and other notable cases – by a title of the form Claimant v Defendant (e.g. Arkell v Pressdram ). Where a legal proceeding does not have formally designated adverse parties, a form such as In re , Re or In
186-437: A customer or supplier), may file for a declaratory judgment in their own jurisdiction , or sue for minor damages in the law of unjustified threats. This may require the sender to appear in a distant court, at their own expense. So sending a cease-and-desist letter presents a dilemma to the sender, as it would be desirable to be able to address the issues at hand in a candid manner without the need for litigation. Upon receiving
217-401: A declaration, is the legal determination of a court that resolves legal uncertainty for the litigants . It is a form of legally binding preventive by which a party involved in an actual or possible legal matter can ask a court to conclusively rule on and affirm the rights, duties, or obligations of one or more parties in a civil dispute (subject to any appeal ). The declaratory judgment
248-405: A legal case may occur between parties that are not in opposition, but require a legal ruling to formally establish some legal facts. A civil case, more commonly known as a lawsuit or controversy , begins when a plaintiff files most a document called a complaint with a court, informing the court of the wrong that the plaintiff has allegedly suffered because of the defendant , and requesting
279-401: A party is threatened with a lawsuit but the lawsuit has not yet been filed; or when a party or parties believe that their rights under law and/or contract might conflict; or as part of a counterclaim to prevent further lawsuits from the same plaintiff (for example, when only a contract claim is filed, but a copyright claim might also be applicable). In some instances, a declaratory judgment
310-444: A patent owner does suggest that there is patent coverage of what an alleged infringer is doing or planning to do, the alleged infringer may bring suit. The alleged infringer, as the plaintiff in the suit, can choose the venue subject to constitutional restrictions and the state long-arm statute of the forum in question. The suit can be brought in any forum if the local federal district court can properly obtain personal jurisdiction over
341-517: A person suspected of a crime is indicted by a grand jury or otherwise charged with the offense by a government official called a prosecutor or district attorney . A criminal case may in some jurisdictions be settled before a trial through a plea bargain . Typically, in a plea bargain, the defendant agrees to plead guilty to a lesser charge than that which was originally brought by the grand jury or prosecutor. A defendant who goes to trial risks greater penalties than would normally be imposed through
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#1732855494746372-409: A plea bargain. Legal cases, whether criminal or civil, are premised on the idea that a dispute will be fairly resolved when a legal procedure exists by which the dispute can be brought to a factfinder not otherwise involved in the case, who can evaluate evidence to determine the truth with respect to claims of guilt, innocence, liability, or lack of fault. Details of the procedure may depend on both
403-431: A product or service that may be a business's focal point. For example, in a typical patent-infringement claim, when a patent owner becomes aware of an infringer, the owner can simply wait until he pleases to bring an infringement suit. Meanwhile, the monetary damages continuously accrue – with no effort expended by the patent owner, apart from marking the patent number on products the patent owner sold or licensed. On
434-667: A standard pseudonym ( Jane Roe in Roe v. Wade ) or by an initial ( D v D ). In titles such as R v Adams , however, the initial "R" is usually an abbreviation for the Latin Rex or Regina , i.e. for the Crown . (For an explanation of other terms that may appear in case titles, see the Glossary of legal terms .) [REDACTED] Quotations related to Legal proceedings at Wikiquote Declaratory judgment A declaratory judgment , also called
465-639: A trial. The plaintiff must make a genuine effort to inform the defendant of the case through service of process , by which the plaintiff delivers to the defendant the same documents that the plaintiff filed with the court. At any point during the case, the parties can agree to a settlement , which will end the case, although in some circumstances, such as in class actions , a settlement requires court approval in order to be binding. Cases involving separation including asset division, support (also known as maintenance or alimony), and matters related to children are handled differently in different jurisdictions. Often,
496-503: Is filed because the statute of limitations against a potential defendant may pass before the plaintiff incurs damage (for example, a malpractice statute applicable to a certified public accountant may be shorter than the time period the IRS has to assess a taxpayer for additional tax due to bad advice given by the CPA). Declaratory judgments are authorized by statute in most common-law jurisdictions. In
527-496: Is generally considered a statutory remedy and not an equitable remedy in the United States , and is thus not subject to equitable requirements, though there are analogies that can be found in the remedies granted by courts of equity . A declaratory judgment does not by itself order any action by a party, or imply damages or an injunction , although it may be accompanied by one or more other remedies. A declaratory judgment
558-408: Is generally distinguished from an advisory opinion because the latter does not resolve an actual case or controversy . Declaratory judgments can provide legal certainty to each party in a matter when this could resolve or assist in a disagreement. Often an early resolution of legal rights will resolve some or all of the other issues in a matter. A declaratory judgment is typically requested when
589-516: The United States , Congressional hearings are not generally considered legal proceedings, as they are generally not directed towards the imposition of a penalty against a specific individual for a specific wrong. However, impeachment proceedings are generally conducted as legal proceedings, although experts dispute the question of whether they are primarily legal proceedings, or are merely political proceedings dressed in legal formalities and language. Richard Posner , for example, has asserted that it
620-415: The United States , the federal government and most states enacted statutes in the 1920s and 1930s authorizing their courts to issue declaratory judgments. The filing of a declaratory judgment lawsuit can follow the sending by one party of a cease-and-desist letter to another party. A party contemplating sending such a letter risks that the recipient, or a party related to the recipient (i.e. such as
651-580: The Division ( velký senát kolegia ) decides cases referred to it by divisions. The Plenum ( plénum ) discusses the Supreme Court's Rules of Procedure and adopts standpoints on the courts decision-making. 49°12′19″N 16°36′08″E / 49.2053°N 16.6022°E / 49.2053; 16.6022 This article about government in the Czech Republic is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Legal case In
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#1732855494746682-574: The Supreme Court forms a triumvirate of courts at the summit of the Czech judiciary . It is situated on Burešova Street 20, Brno. The Supreme Court sits in panels consisting of a Chairman and two judges or it sits in Grand Panels ( velký senát ) of the Divisions. The Divisions analyse and evaluate legally effective decisions of lower courts. The Criminal Division ( trestní kolegium ) consists of
713-556: The court's procedure for dealing with family cases is very similar to that of a civil case (it requires service and disclosure, and will issue judgments). Divorce and separation from a spouse is one of the most stressful situations, as rated by the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale , and so family proceedings are increasingly being "divorced" from the often very formal and impersonal process of civil proceedings, and given special treatment. A criminal case , in common law jurisdictions, begins when
744-455: The judges of the Supreme Court, who apply substantive and procedural criminal law. The Civil and Commercial Division ( občanskoprávní a obchodní kolegium ) is responsible for ensuring uniformity and lawfulness in the decision-making of courts in civil proceedings. It does so in extraordinary appeal proceedings against decisions of courts of appeal and within its non-decision-making jurisdiction by providing standpoints. The Grand Panel of
775-410: The judicial process fully. Some parties send cease-and-desist letters that make "an oblique suggestion of possible infringement" to lower the risk of the recipient filing a declaratory-judgment lawsuit. Declaratory judgments are common in patent litigation, as well as in other areas of intellectual property litigation, because declaratory judgments allow an alleged infringer to "clear the air" about
806-438: The kind of case and the kind of system in which the case is brought – whether, for example, it is an inquisitorial system or a solo In most systems, the governing body responsible for overseeing the courts assigns a unique number/letter combination or similar designation to each case in order to track the various disputes that are or have been before it. The outcome of the case is recorded, and can later be reviewed by obtaining
837-521: The matter of is used (e.g. In re Gault ). The "v" separating the parties is an abbreviation of the Latin versus , but, when spoken in Commonwealth countries , it is normally rendered as " and " or " against " (as in, for example, Charles Dickens ' Jarndyce and Jarndyce ). Where it is considered necessary to protect the anonymity of a natural person , some cases may have one or both parties replaced by
868-536: The other hand, the alleged infringer could do nothing to rectify the situation if no declaratory judgment existed. The alleged infringer would be forced to continue to operate his business with the cloud of a lawsuit over his head. The declaratory-judgment procedure allows the alleged infringer to proactively bring suit to resolve the situation and eliminate the cloud of uncertainty looming overhead. Common claims for declaratory judgment in patent cases are non-infringement, patent invalidity, and un-enforceability. To bring
899-510: The patent owner has claimed that such activities by claimant will result in patent infringement. An express threat of litigation is not needed, nor is it a guarantee that jurisdiction will be granted. Some factors courts have considered in this analysis are whether a patent owner has asserted its rights against an alleged infringer in a royalty dispute, whether the owner has sued a customer of an alleged infringer, or whether an owner has made statements regarding its patents in trade magazines. If
930-551: Was "the intent of the framers of the Constitution that an impeachment proceeding be primarily a legal proceeding, akin to a criminal prosecution, rather than a political one". A legal case is in a general sense a dispute between opposing parties which may be resolved by a court , or by some equivalent legal process. A legal case is typically based on either civil or criminal law . In most legal cases, there are one or more accusers and one or more defendants . In some instances,
961-558: Was most recently addressed by the Supreme Court in MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc. , 549 U.S. 118 (2007). But even if an actual controversy exists, the declaratory-judgment statute is permissive—a district court , in its discretion, may decline to hear a declaratory-judgment action. Usually the claimant is actually making, using, selling, offering to sell, or importing, or is prepared to actually make, use or sell, offer to sell or import an allegedly infringing device or method, and usually