Occasionally in a Buffalo personal injury lawsuit, the attorney for the injured party may be able to prove to the court prior to trial that there are no issues for the defendant to dispute in the case. When that happens, if no settlement is reached between the two parties, a trial may still take place that is limited to proving how much the injured party is owed in damages.
This situation may occur when the injured person’s lawyer makes a motion for summary judgment to the court prior to trial. A motion for summary judgment is a legal document submitted to the court arguing that there are no grounds to dispute many of the issues that must be proven in a case, such as whether the defendant was negligent and whether that negligence led to the plaintiff’s injury.
After the plaintiff’s lawyer submits this document and any accompanying evidence to the judge, the defendant may then submit a response attempting to establish that the challenged issues are disputable and should be heard by a jury. Thereafter, the parties appear before the judge to argue their positions and the judge makes a ruling.
In some cases, a judge may find that the plaintiff has proven that there is nothing to dispute aside from the amount and extent of damages. When this happens the judge may then order a trial to be held that is limited to just this issue.
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