Unless otherwise ordered by a court, a written motion, and notice of hearing of that motion, must be filed and served at least five days before it is heard and argued. See Rule 44.01(d). “[T]he purpose of Rule 44.01(d) is to provide the notified party with an opportunity to be heard.” Allen ex rel. Allen…
Legal Articles
Challenging Excessive Jury Verdicts
While it is difficult to prevail on the argument, it is possible for a trial court or appellate court to overturn a jury’s damages/money award as “excessive” in at least two circumstances. The first situation is when the verdict is disproportionate to the evidence of injury and results from an “honest mistake” by the jury…
Jury Instruction Error
In certain cases, particularly multi-claim cases, jury instructions can be complex. If there is an error in instructing the jury, it may lead to a verdict being reversed on appeal. To preserve an error in jury instructions, however, there are certain procedures that must be followed. Specifically, “[t]o preserve a claim of instructional error, a…
Closing Arguments
Closing arguments in a jury trial is often the best time an attorney can persuade the jury. The evidence has been heard and there is an opportunity for an attorney, unlike when examining a witness on direct or cross-examination, to directly tell the jury (or judge) why the evidence justifies a decision in one party’s…
Cumulative Evidence
For something to be admissible as evidence, it must be legally relevant. To be “legally relevant,” its probative value or usefulness must not be outweighed by its costs, including the dangers of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, misleading the jury, undue delay, waste of time, or the needless presentation of cumulative evidence. Kroeger-Eberhart v. Eberhart,…
Jury Selection, Nondisclosure
One of the most important parts of a jury trial is voire dire (i.e., jury selection). The purpose of jury selection is to ensure that the jury that hears and decides the case is fair and impartial. To meet this objective, the Court and attorneys question jurors and have the ability to remove potential jurors who cannot…
Amending a Petition/Lawsuit
In Missouri, a “Petition” is the lawsuit filed by a plaintiff requesting relief against a defendant (often in the form of money damages). It is called a “Complaint” in federal court, but they’re functionally the same thing. It is quite common for a petition to be amended to account for facts uncovered in discovery or…