254 constitutional county courts (one in each county) Adversarial proceedings- is a lawsuit filed separate from but related to the bankruptcy case Alternative dispute resolution (mediation and arbitration)--an alternative to trial; mediation most prominent form of ADR Answerthe response from the defendant to the filing of a petition by the plaintiff in a civil case initiating a civil lawsuit Appellate courts do not retry cases [appellate courts do not review evidence in their decision; appeals are based upon errors made in the application of the law in the trial or lower court] Appellate jurisdiction- the power of a court to review cases after they have been tried elsewhere, in lower court Automatic appeal of death penalty directly to Texas Court of Criminal Appeals bypassing the intermediate level regional appellate courts Beyond a reasonable doubt- the jury must believe the prosecution's case beyond a reasonable doubt in order to find the defendant guilty Bifurcated- a divided court system in which different courts handle civil and criminal cases- in Texas highest level appeals courts are bifurcated Brief- is a writtenlegaldocument used in variouslegaladversarial systems that is presented to a court arguing why one party to a particular case should prevail.
Burden of proof (in civil and criminal trials)- the standard for deciding the case based upon the facts presented in evidence, in criminal- the burden of proof on plaintiff is beyond a reasonable doubt, in civil- the plaintiff must prove her case to the tryer of fact by a "preponderance of the evidence", so the jury must believe there is more weight to the evidence on the plaintiff side than the defendants Capital murder (what triggers capital murder in Texas? )- if intentionally commits the murder challenges for cause--elimination of potential jurors during jury selection based on basic fairness issues Charge to the jury (written by the judge)--legal instructions for the jury to refer to during their deliberation Civil case- deal with legal disputes between private individual or groups Civil case required agreement of only 10 of the 12 jurors for a verdict Civil defendant- is accused but not of an offense, but civil wrong (tort or breach of contract) Direct Civil law- the system of law concerned with private relations between members of a community rather than criminal, military, or religious affairs.
Clear and convincing evidence- that the evidence presented by a party during the trial is more highly probable to be true and the jury or judge has a firm belief or conviction in it. Direct Common law- a body of law that is based on custom and general principles and embodied in case law and that serves as a precedent or is applied to situations not covered by statute the common law of torts Constitutional county courts- presided over by a county judge who in areas of small population, hears cases in county court serves as presiding officer of the commissioner cou...
