A defendant is a individual or entity that is facing a civil lawsuit , or that has been accused of a crime. For instance, if the jury believes that there is a lot more than a 50% probability that the defendant was negligent in causing the plaintiff’s injury, the plaintiff wins. In criminal instances, the testifying witnesses are just a bit distinct since a criminal defendant (the accused individual) can not be forced to testify. Though, the identical act may spawn each a civil and a criminal case, the two legal instances are always kept separate. The judge or jury is not expected to award the plaintiff the quantity he or she asks for. In part, this is because a different common or burden of proof is needed in criminal case.
In most situations the burden of proof, like the burden of going forward, shifts from one side to the other through the course of a trial as the case progresses and evidence is introduced by each side. In other words, when the plaintiff successfully shows trigger for his or her claim, the defendant have to prove his or her case to the court. The guidelines of procedure by which private rights are enforced the rules by which civil actions are governed.
If the defense does present a case and contact witnesses, the very same guidelines and procedures that governed presentation of evidence by the prosecution now apply to proof presented by the defense like the opportunity for the prosecutor to cross-examine defense witnesses. If a judgment of acquittal is not requested or if the request is denied, the defense could present evidence for its side of the case.
If the details justify the remedy the plaintiff is seeking, the court will hold the defendant liable, or legally accountable. In criminal instances, a victim of a crime does not sue, but rather the State (plaintiff) sues the individual allegedly committing the crime (defendant), and the victim becomes a witness in the case. In other words, for the plaintiff to win the case, the judge or a jury need to think that the weight of the plaintiff’s proof is higher than the weight of the defendant’s proof. Civil situations involve non-criminal conflicts, such as house and contract disputes.
Everyone has the right to hire and seem with an attorney, but in a civil case an lawyer is not automatically appointed to represent a particular person who can’t afford 1. Alternatively, the government gives the particular officer, called the prosecutor or district lawyer in quite a few localities, who files criminal charges against the defendant on the public’s behalf.
