Discussion Question : Preparing a Client for Trial

Trials are a source of stress for clients and for attorneys. While attorneys are trained for the trial process, clients are not. Making sure a client knows what to expect is an important part of making sure the client does not say or do things that might be harmful to the case. Ethics and competence are what the attorney through the paralegal should impress upon the client.

Now respond to the following:

• Identify some of the problems that attorneys and paralegals face when prepping a client for trial.
• How might the client endanger his or her case?
• What kind of solutions might you be able to offer?

Justify your answers with examples and reasoning.

At the close of the trial there are a host of documents that will effectively end the law suit. These same documents are also used to come to a settlement. This is the time when the settlement documents are traded and the settlement amounts are disbursed. However before money changes hands there needs to be a judgment rendered by the court.

Based on your readings, respond to the following:

• Describe a judgment.
• What is the process for entering a judgment?
• How is a judgment enforced against a judgment debtor?
• How can a paralegal best help in the process?

Justify your answers with examples and reasoning.