Civil Litigation

Peggy N. Kerley is a contract litigation paralegal, recently retired from Sidley Austin LLP in Dallas, Texas. Ms. Kerley received her paralegal certificate from the University of Oklahoma followed by an undergraduate degree in political economy from the University of Texas at Dallas. She has more than 50 years of legal experience and served as a paralegal instructor at Southeastern Paralegal Institute in Dallas, Texas. Ms. Kerley has authored another paralegal textbook, EMPLOYMENT LAW FOR THE PARALEGAL. Joanne Banker Hames, J.D., is a retired paralegal coordinator and full-time instructor for the paralegal program at DeAnza Community College in Cupertino, California. She is currently a part-time instructor at the school. She earned her J.D. degree from Santa Clara University School of Law and was admitted to the California Bar in January 1972. She has been an active member since that time. For several years Ms. Hames was employed as an attorney in a busy litigation law firm. During that time she was involved in all aspects of civil litigation, including pre-trial preparation, jury trials and appeals. For the past 14 years she has been involved primarily in paralegal education. She taught at Santa Clara University Paralegal Institute before joining DeAnza Community College. Paul Sukys, J.D., Ph.D., is a Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Law, Literature and Legal Studies at North Central State College in Mansfield, Ohio. He has also taught as an adjunct professor at Ashland University, Mount Vernon Nazarene University and Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland. Dr. Sukys received his bachelor's and master's degrees from John Carroll University in Cleveland, his law degree from Cleveland State University and his doctorate in applied philosophy and art history from The Union Institute and University in Cincinnati. He is a member of the Ohio Bar, the Ohio State Bar Association, the Authors Guild, the National Business Education Association, the Community College Humanities Association and the Lakeside Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle.

• Part I: INTRODUCTION TO CIVIL LITIGATION.1. Litigation and the Paralegal.2. The Courts and Jurisdiction.Part II: INITIATING LITIGATION.3. Preliminary Considerations and Procedures.4. Investigation and Evidence.5. The Complaint.6. Responses to the Complaint.7. Motion Practice.Part III: DISCOVERY.8. Overview of the Discovery Process.9. Depositions.10. Interrogatories.11. Physical and Mental Examinations.12. Request for Documents.13. Request for Admission and the Future Ethical Problems of DiscoveryPart IV: PRETRIAL, TRIAL, AND POSTTRIAL.14. Settlements, Dismissals, and Alternative Dispute Resolution.15. Trial Techniques.16. Post-trial Practice.Appendix A: Sample Deposition.Appendix B: Bennett and Douglass Research Files.Appendix C: Website ResourcesGlossary.Index.