Difference Between Procedural And Substantive Law

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Each year, courts nationwide are dealing with the ever-increasing number of pro se´ litigants. If you have made the difficult decision to pursue personal legal matters alone, you are considered to be a pro se´ litigant. While hiring an attorney to provide representation is typically the best way to proceed, doing so may not be an option for many. We all have access to an attorney for criminal matters, but the same does not apply to most civil issues. Pro se´ litigation should not be taken lightly, and certainly will not prove easy. Remembering the following tips as you take this daunting journey, will help to alleviate (some) inevitable stress.
1. Respect the process:
The rules of the court are in place to provide continuity and to allow
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4. Know the difference between procedural and substantive law:
As your case meanders down the slow stream of justice, you must learn how to navigate. The rules by which it travels are known as practice rules or procedural law. You can access these rules in the courthouse library. Typically, the rules govern areas relating to timing, pleadings, discovery requests, motion practice, and trial procedure. Essentially, these rules boil down to the when’s and the how’s of your case disposition.
Substantive law is the prism by which the court will look through to determine how to apply the facts of your case to a legal outcome. For example, let’s say you slip on a grape in a local grocery store, breaking your foot in the process. If the court finds the grocery store responsible, it will do so by utilizing the substantive law related to premises liability.
Considering the same facts, let’s say you failed to file your case within the allotted time. Based on that failure, the attorney for the grocery store files a motion to dismiss your case. This would be viewed as a violation of a statute of limitation. This information may not always be available in the practice rules, but it can be found in your state’s general statutes. A statute of limitations violation that bars the court from having jurisdiction over the matter, is a procedural law. See the

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