Not all cases end up going to trial. Some are settled. Others are dismissed at an early stage for procedural reasons. Still other cases are disposed of on the eve of trial by a mechanism known as summary judgment.
The rules of civil procedure provide that either party (plaintiff or defendant) can file a motion for summary judgment if the depositions, admissions on file, and other discovery materials show that there is no remaining disputed issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Stated differently, if the existing evidence shows overwhelmingly that one party is entitled to judgment, it will be entered summarily in favor of that party unless the opposing party can show that a factual dispute which requires a trial remains. Summary judgment is a short-cut mechanism to dispose of cases efficiently where there is no real factual dispute remaining, and all that is left is application of the law.
Summary judgment is most useful in commercial cases, especially cases involving defaulted loans, contract disputes and similar matters. If a borrower admits in a sworn deposition that he signed the bank’s loan document, stopped making payments on the loan, and offers as his defense the fact that he lost his job, summary judgment in favor of the bank would be appropriate. (Losing your job is not a legal defense to failure to pay a debt.)
Summary judgment is not appropriate in cases involving significant factual disputes. For example, if an injured pedestrian claims that a wayward driver lost control and struck her on the sidewalk, but the driver claims that the pedestrian actually darted out into the street, only a trial to determine the facts will resolve the dispute. Credibility, ability to observe, and recollection are all factors only a judge or jury can evaluate. Summary judgment cannot resolve basic factual disputes.
In the end, summary judgment provides a convenient and straightforward mechanism for courts to dispose of cases where there remains no real factual dispute. If the parties are in relative agreement on the facts, the court will apply the law, decide the case and enter judgment for the proper party – without a lengthy and expensive trial.
The rules of civil procedure provide that either party (plaintiff or defendant) can file a motion for summary judgment if the depositions, admissions on file, and other discovery materials show that there is no remaining disputed issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Stated differently, if the existing evidence shows overwhelmingly that one party is entitled to judgment, it will be entered summarily in favor of that party unless the opposing party can show that a factual dispute which requires a trial remains. Summary judgment is a short-cut mechanism to dispose of cases efficiently where there is no real factual dispute remaining, and all that is left is application of the law.
Summary judgment is most useful in commercial cases, especially cases involving defaulted loans, contract disputes and similar matters. If a borrower admits in a sworn deposition that he signed the bank’s loan document, stopped making payments on the loan, and offers as his defense the fact that he lost his job, summary judgment in favor of the bank would be appropriate. (Losing your job is not a legal defense to failure to pay a debt.)
Summary judgment is not appropriate in cases involving significant factual disputes. For example, if an injured pedestrian claims that a wayward driver lost control and struck her on the sidewalk, but the driver claims that the pedestrian actually darted out into the street, only a trial to determine the facts will resolve the dispute. Credibility, ability to observe, and recollection are all factors only a judge or jury can evaluate. Summary judgment cannot resolve basic factual disputes.
In the end, summary judgment provides a convenient and straightforward mechanism for courts to dispose of cases where there remains no real factual dispute. If the parties are in relative agreement on the facts, the court will apply the law, decide the case and enter judgment for the proper party – without a lengthy and expensive trial.
– Kevin Palmer