Represent yourself in court: how to prepare and try a winning case

Going It Alone In Court:

Scope of this book

Can you really represent yourself?

Coping with being a stranger in a strange land

Civility

Arranging for limited-scope legal representation

Pro se-friendly court rules and procedures

Online legal assistance

Using this book

Trying to settle your case

Alternatives to trial

Courthouse And The Courtroom:

Overview of different courts

Typical courthouse

Courtroom players

Courtroom and its physical layout

Courtroom rules, customs, and etiquette

Starting Your Case:

Do you have a good case?

Is your lawsuit timely?

Which court has the power to hear your case?

Beginning a lawsuit

Pretrial Procedures:

Know and follow pretrial deadlines

Pretrial conferences

Court-ordered mediation and arbitration

Initial pretrial procedures: setting ground rules

Intermediate pretrial procedures: discovery and motions

Final pretrial procedures: trial preparation

Investigating Your Case:

Informal investigation

Formal discovery

Depositions

Written interrogatories

Requests for production of documents and subpoenas

Requests for admissions

Settlement:

Court-ordered mediation

Court-ordered arbitration

Offers of judgment

Pretrial settlement conferences

Post-settlement documents

Pretrial Motions:

Overview of pretrial motion practice

Is a motion necessary?

What goes into a motion?

Scheduling a court hearing on a pretrial motion

Serving and filing your documents

Court hearings on motions

Common pretrial motions

Proving Your Case At Trial: The Plaintiff's Perspective:

Elements of a legal claim

Finding the elements of our claim

Proving each element

Your burden of proof

Identifying facts to prove the elements of your claim

Looking ahead to trial: organizing your evidence

Learning about your adversary's case

Proving Your Case At Trial: The Defendant's Perspective:

Identifying the elements of the plaintiff's legal claim

Identifying the plaintiff's facts

Defeating any one element of a claim

Disproving the plaintiff's facts by impeaching witnesses

Proving your version of events

Putting defense strategies together

Selecting The Decision Maker:

Are you eligible for a jury trial?

Are you better off with a judge or a jury?

Your opponent's right to a jury trial

Disqualifying a judge

Making a timely request for a jury trial

Jury selection process

Your right to challenge jurors

What should you ask prospective jurors?

Alternate jurors

Opening Statement:

Should you make an opening statement?

When to make your opening statement

Putting together you opening statement

What not to say during your opening statement

Rehearsing and presenting your opening statement

Sample opening statement and outline

Direct Examination:

Direct examination as storytelling

Overview of direct examination procedures

Preparing for direct examination

Presenting your own testimony on direct examination

Questioning witnesses

Hostile witnesses

Judge's role

Sample direct examination

Cross-Examination:

Overview of cross-examination

Should you cross-examine?

Asking questions on cross-examination

Eliciting helpful evidence

Impeaching adverse witnesses

Basing questions on evidence you can offer

What to do if your witness is impeached

Preparing for cross-examination

Closing Argument:

When to deliver your closing argument

Preparing and rehearsing your closing argument

Putting together a closing argument

What not to say during your closing argument

Rebuttal argument

Objections during closing

Sample closing argument and outline

Exhibits:

Overview of admitting exhibits into evidence

Step 1: Mark your exhibits and show them to your adversary

Step 2: Identify (authenticate) your exhibits

Step 3: Lay a foundation

Letting jurors see your exhibits

When exhibits are required: the best evidence rule

Objecting to your adversary's exhibits

Organizing exhibits for trial

Basic Rules Of Evidence:

Relevance

Excluding relevant but unfairly prejudicial evidence

Rule against opinions

Rules excluding evidence based on social policies

Hearsay

Making And Responding To Objections:

Overview of objections

Objections made before trial: motions in limine

Making objections during trial

Responding to your adversary's objections

Checklist of common objections

Organizing A Trial Notebook:

Setting up your notebook

Index Tab 1: Legal pleadings

Index Tab 2: Discovery materials

Index Tab 3: Legal claim outline

Index Tab 4: Opening statement outline

Index Tab 5: Direct examination outlines

Index Tab 6: Cross-examination outlines

Index Tab 7: Closing argument outline

Index Tab 8: Jury trial documents

Index Tab 9: Miscellaneous documents

Expert Witnesses:

Who are expert witnesses?

Do you need an expert witness?

Special rules for expert witnesses

Finding and hiring an expert witness

Questioning your expert witness at trial

Cross-examining your opponent's expert witness

When Your Trial Ends: Judgments And Appeals:

How final decisions are made at the end of trial

Requesting a new trial or change in the verdict

Appeals

Collecting and paying judgments

Representing Yourself In Family Court:

Formulate a divorce game plan

Understanding the basics of family law

Filing for divorce

How uncontested divorces work

How contested divorces work

Modification of support, custody, and visitation

Representing Yourself In Bankruptcy Court:

Chapter 7 bankruptcy process

Meeting of creditors (341(a) hearing)

Relief from stay hearing

Objection to exemption hearing

Discharge of debt hearing

Reaffirmation of debt hearing

Getting help beyond this book

Help Beyond The Book: People, Places, And Publications

What you may want to research

Sources of information

Glossary

Index.

1. Going it alone in court --

2. The courthouse and the courtroom --

3. Starting your case --

4. Overview of pretrial procedures --

5. Investigating your case --

6. Settlement --

7. Pretrial motions --

8. What you need to prove at trial : the plaintiff's perspective --

9. What you need to prove at trial : the defendant's perspective --

10. Selecting the decisionmaker --

11. Opening statement --

12. Direct examination --

13. Cross-examination --

14. Closing argument --

15. Exhibits --

16. Basic rules of evidence --

Making and responding to objections --

18. Organizing a trial notebook --

19. Expert witnesses --

20. When your trial ends : judgment & appeals --

21. Representing yourself in divorce court --

. 22. Represent yourself in bankruptcy court --

23. Getting help from attorneys : hiring a legal coach --

24. Legal research --

Glossary --

Index.