In law, there is a term called motion. Have you heard about it? According to the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School, a motion is defined as a formal request which is made by any party for a ruling, order, or judgement which is desired. In the American justice system, legal motions are one of the most common aspects. Legal motions ensure that issues which are controversial or disputed related to a case are able to be resolved efficiently.
Here are eleven types of legal motions in U.S. law which are very common and important according to the Law Dictionary.
1. Motion to Dismiss
This motion is usually required when one side, where it is usually the defendant, thinks that the claim made by the plaintiff is not a claim which can be ruled by the court. It means that when a motion to dismiss happens, the moving party is not contesting the facts as shown by the other party, but they say that the claim is not a legal one that can be ruled by the court.
This motion helps to make sure that disputes that do not involve legal issues do not waste the time and resources of the court.
2. Motion to Strike
This motion is requested when a party wants something to be removed from the record of the court. Someone uses this motion usually if there is information or language in the record that is not admissible evidence, such as vague, redundant, immaterial, scandalous, or unimportant. Then, the statement can be replaced with a more specific and clear statement.
3. Discovery motions
This is a motion when the prosecution and defense try to discover all the facts of the case. In the process, both parties will gather information and evidence that they are able to use to build their case. To help establish the facts of the case, both parties are allowed to request information from one another.
4. Motion in Limine
This motion is about the evidence which can and cannot be filed to a jury in court. This motion makes sure that the evidence is not filed since the beginning and also makes sure that a defendant gets a fair trial. Motions in limine has three types:
- Inclusionary
This type asks the court to include certain evidence specifically in a trial.
- Exclusionary
It asks that information is excluded and kept from the jury.
- Preclusionary
It is able to hinder evidence which is potentially inadmissible from being included.
5. Motion for Summary Judgement
This motion may be the motion which is the most frequent one to be made, but this motion is not always available in all cases. This motion is made before the trial starts. In this motion, the judge is asked to make a decision on the case without going to trial. This motion can only happen if there are no facts of the case that are disputed. So, a final ruling on the case needs to be decided. Actually, this motion can save a lot of time and money for both parties. If this motion wants to be issued, make sure that there is no dispute about the material facts of the case and the party who fills the motion needs to be entitled as a matter of law to a judgement.
6. Motion for a Directed Verdict
In this motion, one of the parties, namely the defense, asks the court to end the case. This motion is made by the defense after the prosecution has rested the case. In this motion, it is argued that the prosecution has failed to prove the case so that the defense does not have to give any evidence. This motion is a motion which has the same features like a motion for summary judgement and a motion to dismiss.
7. Motion to Compel
When this motion is made, the moving party is asking the judge to use the power of the court to force another party to do something that has been so far denied by him or her. This motion is able to be used during the discovery process to make sure that both parties have full access to the facts of the case. Let’s say that the plaintiff denies to answer questions in a deposition. In this case, a motion to compel can be filed by the defendant to compel the plaintiff to answer the questions. What will happen if the motion is granted but the plaintiff still denies to answer the questions? If so, she or he may deal with contempt of court charges. Can motions to compel be used when the trial is conducted? Yes, it can, for example, when there is a witness who denies to answer a question while testifying.
8. Motion for Nolle Prosequi
This is a motion where the prosecution is not able to prove the case or there is a fatal mistake in the evidence and then the prosecution can request the court not to pursue charges against the defendant anymore. It means that the prosecution has made a decision not to prosecute. When can this motion be filed? It is usually filed if the new evidence shows that the defendant is innocent or a serious flaw in the case is exposed.
9. Motion for Judgement Non-Obstante Veredicto
This motion is done after the jury has delivered its verdict. The motion is made by the defendant and asks the judge to cancel the verdict made by the jury. This motion seldom happens. It is usually done if there is no reason that makes sense that becomes the base of the jury to make the verdict. For example, a jury made a guilty verdict even though there is evidence that clearly proves that the defendant did not commit the offense.
10. Motion for a New Trial
This is another motion which is filed after a verdict has been delivered. Either party is able to make this motion if they are sure that significant error has happened during the trial so that a new trial is needed. For example, evidence has been filed during the trial but it had been excluded because of a motion in limine.
11. Motion to Set Aside Judgement
This is another motion which is able to be filed after a judgement or verdict in a case has been delivered. It asks the court to vacate or nullify a judgement or verdict which had previously been reached in the case. In general, this motion is filed when there is new evidence after the case has ended, which may cause doubt on the original verdict. This motion is unique because it is able to be filed long after a verdict or judgement has been issued.
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