Toshala Oliver
LAW/531
January 31, 2015
Tom Poulton
Memorandum
To: Supervisor
From: Toshala Oliver
Date: February 2, 2015
Subject: The Legal System and Texas Level of Business Dispute
Texas has many disputes that can be federal or state cases, and this memo will provide an exclusive analysis regarding how a civil action case in the state court system went through the legal stages and other ADR or alternative methods of dispute resolution methods. This memo will not be complete without providing the differences of cost and benefits between using ADR versus a traditional litigation.
Legal Stages
The first part of this memo will address, according to Findlaw.com (2014), a civil case begins when a person or entity (such as a corporation or the government), called the plaintiff, claims that another person or entity (the defendant) has failed to carry out a legal duty owed to the plaintiff. This Texas case involves when the plaintiffs, the Texas tax payer & student fairness coalition was given final judgment against defendants, Michael Williams, Commissioner of education after a forty-five day trial which the ruling was for the plaintiffs’ claims (TravisCountyTexas.gov, 2015). Both parties would present their arguments and the judge or jury would consider if the defendant is liable for the plaintiff’s claimed damages or other preparation. The plaintiff was granted funding for educational funds necessary to accomplish a general diffusion of knowledge due to the school finance system was financially ineffective. The case states that children who live in poor districts must be afforded the opportunity to access education funds. The plaintiff may ask the court to tell the defendant to fulfill the duty, or make compensation for the harm done, or both (Findlaw.com, 2014)
Alternative Methods of Dispute Resolution According to Person, Whitworth, Borchers, & Morales (2005), many people prefer ADR because they view it as a more
References: Civil Courts (2015). Retrieved from, https://www.traviscountytx.gov/courts/civil/ Civil Cases vs. Criminal Cases - Key Differences, Retrieved from, http://litigation.findlaw.com/filing-a-lawsuit/civil-cases-vs-criminal-cases-key-differences.html Harms, S (2015). Traditional Litigation versus Alternative Dispute Resolution (in collection cases). Retrieved from, http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/traditional-litigation-versus-alternativ-97899/ Person, Whitworth, Borchers & Morales L.L.P. (2005), Understanding Alternative Dispute Resolution, Retrieved from, http://www.personwhitworth.com/CM/Custom/E-Newsletter.asp Texas Judicial Branch, Retrieved from, http://www.txcourts.gov/rules-forms/rules-standards.aspx