Parties Involved in Legal Proceedings
- Plaintiff and Defendant: In civil cases, the plaintiff refers to the party initiating the lawsuit, and the defendant refers to the party responding to the plaintiff’s action.
- Petitioner and Respondent: In appellate cases or other proceedings (like petitions for review), the party initiating the appeal is referred to as the petitioner, especially in non-criminal cases, while the opposing party is the respondent.
- Appellant and Appellee: In appeals from lower court decisions, the party appealing the decision is the appellant, and the party defending the lower court’s ruling is the appellee.
How Cases Start and End
Cases generally begin when a plaintiff (in civil cases) or prosecutor (in criminal cases) files a complaint or charges against a defendant, alleging harm or violation of law. The case proceeds through stages of discovery, pre-trial motions, and sometimes a trial, where both sides present evidence and arguments.
Trials may be conducted before a judge, which is referred to as a bench trial, or jury, which typically in Alaska, consists of 12 people for felony trials in superior court and 6 people for misdemeanor trials in district court.
Juries are referred to as petite or grand. A grand jury in Alaska is represented by 12-18 members who, in criminal matters, decide whether the evidence presented by the State is supportive of an indictment.
An indictment refers to the formal charging of a crime. It is important to note that in criminal matters, the defense is entirely unrepresented during grand jury proceedings. In other words, the State is entitled to present evidence and call witnesses, but the defendant is neither present nor permitted to cross-examine the witnesses or challenge the evidence.
A judge (or jury in jury trials) then decides based on the law and evidence presented.
If the losing party believes there was an error in how the law was applied or in procedural aspects of the trial, they may appeal to a higher court. If necessary, the appellate process can be taken to the Supreme Court. A case ends when a final decision is made at the trial level without further appeal or after the appellate or Supreme Court upholds, reverses, or remands a case and all avenues of appeal are exhausted.