Civil Litigation, the Courts, and You

First things first; I am not an attorney. Therefore I cannot give legal advice, and nothing in this page should not be construed as such.  Practicing law without a license is a serious offense, and should be avoided by all parties, including pro se litigants. (pro se means self-represented) The fact that you represented yourself in court does not mean you can represent someone else; you cannot! In The State Bar Association of Connecticut v. Connecticut Bank & Trust Co., 140 A.2d 863, 870 (1958) this definition was given: “The practice of law consists in no small part of work performed outside of any court and having no immediate relation to proceedings in court. It embraces the giving of legal advice on a large variety of subjects and the preparation of legal instruments covering an extensive field.”

The short version is that you may not give legal advice or perform the functions of an attorney  unless you have been admitted to the bar and are allowed to practice law. In some jurisdictions this extends to the preparation of certain documents, although this particular phase is a gray area since anyone can download anything now and change names, etc. to suit themselves. It does extend to the point that a paralegal or non-lawyer can assist in preparing your documents, but cannot legally advise you as to what you should include in them. This has to be the litigant's decision; after all, it is the litigant who will eventually have to go to court. If you cannot answer any questions because you have no clue as to what the documents you allegedly prepared contain, you'll be in trouble with the judge, and so may the preparer.

Legal advice consists of interpreting the law, or applying the law to a certain set of facts. A non-lawyer cannot advise you as to whether you have a case, what a case might be worth, whether a particular statute applies to your case, or what cases might help you prove your point. The gray area is that paralegals do this routinely; most lawyers do nothing in their cases except make a few decisions and beg for a settlement, usually at the expense of their client. After all, what do they care; they will receive one third as a rule, so why work for it? Assembly line litigation where virtually all of the paperwork and pleadings are prepared by paralegals is the norm. The lawyer, however, is responsible for the paralegal’s work. He may or may not review it before it is sent out.

Paralegals who assist non-lawyers usually prepare documents, do research, and help the litigant navigate the  maze of rules known as the Rules of Civil Procedure. Each state has their own, but they are all loosely based upon the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. This is the "road map" to the court system, and shows you the proper way to file a case and its various parts.

In today's economy, many people are representing themselves in court. The savings are obvious; $300.00 per hour adds up quickly, and legal fees often eclipse any judgment you might win in a small case.  Credit card cases are one example; most lawyers won't even take them. After all, they reason, if you can't pay a credit card bill, you won't be able to pay them either. And for the amounts involved, usually in the 2-3,000.00 range, it just doesn't pay for the client to hire a lawyer.

That aside, you have to know what you're doing in a court of law, or you'll lose quickly. One mistake or procedural error, and your case is lost. Judges give pro se people a little leniency, but not that much. This is where a legal assistant an be invaluable.

I grew up around this stuff; my sister was a court stenographer for thirty years. I have studied law extensively for my own cases over the past few years. I also took law classes in college, back in the 1970's. My area of "expertise" is civil litigation. I know quite a bit about mortgage laws, banking laws, credit card laws, and even a little bit about immigration. I do NOT know or like real estate, probate, wills, or tax law. I prefer strictly to help people sue each other and defend against credit card companies and the "junk debt buyer" law firms they use.

I am very familiar with the Connecticut rules and statutes, and have extensive experience researching the laws and rules of other states as well. Except California. Nobody can figure out California. If you are planning to represent yourself in court, you'll need to know how to proceed. I can assist you in that regard, just email me and tell me what you need.

chfisher2004@yahoo.com