How does suing someone work

By Bethany K. Laurence , Attorney. You need to answer three fundamental -- and fairly obvious -- questions as part of deciding whether it's worthwhile to bring a lawsuit to court:.

To figure out whether you have a good case, it helps to know that lawyers break each type of lawsuit "cause of action" in attorney-speak into a short list of legally required elements. It follows that as long as you know what the elements are for your type of lawsuit, it's usually fairly easy to determine whether you have a good case.

For example, a lawsuit against a contractor for doing substandard construction would be for breach of contract because the contractor agreed either orally or in writing to do the job properly.

The legal elements for this type of lawsuit are as follows:. Contract formation. You must show that you have a legally binding contract with the other party. If you have a written agreement, this element is especially easy to prove.

Without a written contract, you will have to show that you had an enforceable oral spoken contract, or that an enforceable contract can be implied from the circumstances of your situation. You must prove that you did what was required of you under the terms of the contract.

Assuming you have made agreed-on payments and otherwise cooperated, you should have no problem with this element. You must show that the party you plan to sue failed to meet his or her contractual obligations "breach of contract" in legalese.

This is usually the heart of the case -- you'll need to prove that the contractor failed to do agreed-on work or did work of unacceptably poor quality. You must show that you suffered an economic loss as a result of the other party's breach of contract.

Assuming the work must be redone or finished, this element should also be relatively straightforward to prove. The legal elements for other types of lawsuits are different. Berman Nolo. Even if you decide you have a good case, don't rush down to the courthouse to file a lawsuit. First, think about ways to settle your dispute out of court.

You can talk directly with your opponent and try to negotiate a mutually beneficial compromise. Or you can hire a mediator -- a neutral third person who will help you and your opponent evaluate your goals and options in order to find a solution that works for everyone. Your landlord claims you broke several things in your apartment that you didn't pay for.

You know they were broken when you moved in. The forms you signed when you moved in don't specifically mention those items. How do you keep from having to replace something you aren't responsible for? Lawsuits are filed every day. Although the number of product liability cases in was less than half of the number in , the courts are still clogged with civil lawsuits. Most courts are trying to encourage people to settle their disputes out of court, and some require mediation at some point in the process before you can go to trial.

Keep in mind that the legal process differs from state to state so this may not always be exactly the way it works in your area.

First, let's start off by establishing that there is a difference in a civil trial and criminal trial. When you sue someone and take him to court, it is usually based on a tort. When someone breaks a criminal law, then the public prosecutor takes him to court for a criminal trial. Torts provide grounds for the lawsuit. Specific torts include trespassing, assault, battery, negligence, product liability, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Property Damage. The negligent careless or intentional behavior of the person you are suing has damaged your personal property. Other legal theories exist. There are dozens of more obscure types of lawsuits, each with its own legal requirements. If your case isn't covered here, you will want to do some research to determine whether your case meets the qualifications of some other legal theory. Here is an example of why it's so important to establish not only that you have suffered a loss, but also that the defendant is legally required to compensate you.

Upon discovery of the theft, and after reporting it to the police, Sue promptly filed suit against the landlord in small claims court.

As part of preparing for her day in court, Sue got several witnesses willing to testify that her car had been vandalized and obtained a copy of the police investigation report. She also got several estimates as to the cost of repairing the damage to the car window and replacing the stereo. In preparing for her case, Sue overlooked one crucial thing. Under the circumstances, the building owner wasn't liable. He had never promised either orally or in writing to keep the garage locked.

In addition, he had never locked the garage or otherwise led Sue to believe that he would do so. The judge determined that all the tenants knew or should have known that anyone could gain access to the garage, either from inside or outside the building, and that there had been no previous crimes committed there.

The judge concluded that, in failing to lock the garage, the building owner was neither in violation of a contract nor guilty of any negligent behavior. As he explained to Sue when he ruled for the landlord, the legal situation she faced was little different than it would have been if her car had been damaged on the street. Now let's take this same situation, but change a few facts. Let's assume the lease Sue signed with the landlord stated that Sue would be assigned a parking place in a "secure garage.

Finally, let's assume that Sue and other tenants had asked the owner to fix the lock the day after it broke, but that he hadn't "gotten around to it. The landlord made a contractual promise to the tenants to keep the garage locked and then failed to keep it though he'd had plenty of time to fulfill his obligation. The breach of contract allowed the thief access to the car. The same logic applies to defendants. To defend a case well, a defendant needs to understand the essential legal elements of the case the plaintiff is attempting to prove.

Once armed with this information, the defendant will be in good shape to try to convince the judge that at least one essential legal requirement is missing. Check your state's small claims court rules. Many small claims courts limit the types of cases they will decide in addition to restricting the dollar amount of damages you can claim.

For example, Rhode Island's small claims court only allows breach of contract claims and claims by consumers for damages connected with retail products or services. Ask your small claims court clerk or review your small claims court's rules to make sure your type of case can be heard. The information provided on this site is not legal advice, does not constitute a lawyer referral service, and no attorney-client or confidential relationship is or will be formed by use of the site.