Understanding Civil Procedure (Legal Text Series)

The law of civil procedure governs the manner in which cases enter, transit, and leave the judicial process. It establishes the authority of courts to hear cases, opportunities for litigants to create and use a record of decision, and the force and effect of judgments. In the preface to this Understanding treatise, the authors suggest that the key to understanding the principles of civil procedure is to know why: why the principles were created and why they are invoked. This clearly written treatise provides the background and explanation necessary to gain a strong understanding of the principles that govern civil procedure. Although the authors use the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as a model, they also refer to different state rules and doctrines where appropriate in order to present a representative cross-section of state models.