Article: If you do proceed to trial, your case will either be decided by a judge or a jury. Usually, the parties decide whether to have the case decided by a judge or jury. In some cases, you may want to ask for a judge and not request a jury.If you are representing yourself, a trial before a judge is likely to be more informal, and you will not have to worry about the jury's impression of you in the courtroom. You should ask for a jury if your case has "emotional appeal" and you think the jury may be sympathetic to your cause. However, keep in mind that this can backfire if someone on the jury doesn't like you. Keep in mind that the trial will have all of the same "parts," regardless of whether you are in front of a judge or a jury. The "opening statement" is a type of speech given at the start of trial. It is your first opportunity to introduce yourself and your case. If you filed the lawsuit (and therefore are the plaintiff), you will give your opening statement first, followed by the defendant. In your opening statement, you should give an overview of what your case is about and what your evidence will prove. You should begin proving your case by telling the jury what evidence is in your favor and what happened to you. Keep in mind that you cannot state your own opinions in an opening statement, and if you do so you could be reprimanded by the judge. During the presentation of the case, you will call your own witnesses, and "examine" them (this is called direct examination). You will also have the opportunity to ask questions of your opponent's witnesses (this is called cross examination). To prepare for calling and examining your witnesses, make sure that they all agree to be present at the trial. For direct examination, you should prepare a notebook with an outline of what you want to ask the witnesses. Ask questions that will encourage the witnesses to talk, instead of "yes" and "no" questions. To get comfortable with questioning witnesses, you can meet with them to practice beforehand. For cross examination, realize that you probably won't get that much useful information, and limit or completely forgo examining the opposing witnesses. Only cross examine the opposing witnesses if you can get evidence from them that supports your version of events or discredits their trustworthiness as a witness. Always be kind and polite to any witnesses, even during cross examination. Arguing with or badgering a witness (even an opposing witness) looks bad to the jury, and could get you in trouble with the judge. A closing argument is delivered at the end of a trial, after all of the evidence has been presented and all witnesses have been called. A closing argument is the last chance you will have to address the judge or the jury. Closing arguments are usually between 10 and 20 minutes, but, if the case is extremely complicated, they can be much longer, in some cases up to one hour. Unlike an opening statement, which can be written well in advance of the trial, a closing argument will be based on the events of the trial, so to prepare an effective closing argument, make sure that you take notes throughout the trial. To see in-depth information about preparing a closing argument, visit wikiHow's guide on writing a closing argument. Even after the trial has ended, the losing party can appeal the loss to a higher court. An appeal is a request to a higher court to review and overturn the decision of a lower court. In federal court, appeals are heard by the United States Court of Appeals. In state court systems, the appeals courts go by various names. If you think you might want to appeal the decision in your case, make sure you understand the following: How appeals are decided: generally, the courts of appeal do not want to tell the trial judge that he made the wrong decision, or "overrule" that decision. Therefore, an appeals court will usually only overturn the decision of a lower court if the lower court made a significant error of law.What a "significant error of law" is will be completely different depending on each particular case. What evidence you can present: The courts of appeals do not look at any new evidence that may have been discovered after the case was decided (either by the judge or the jury). Instead, the court will look at the documents from the case, a "brief" by both parties discussing why each one believes that they have the correct view, and in some cases, will listen to both parties argue your case in front of the court (this is referred to as "oral argument). The consequences of an unsuccessful appeal: if a party unsuccessfully appeal the court's order, the higher court will "affirm" the lower court's ruling (or the jury's), and the current judgment will stand. For more information on appealing a court order, visit WikiHow's guide on Appealing a Court Order.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Understand who will decide your case. Give an opening statement. Call and examine your witnesses. Deliver your closing argument. Decide Whether to Appeal.