Full Test Bank Ch6 Civil Procedure And Trial Practice

Chapter 6 Civil Procedure and Trial Practice

Multiple Choice

1. The first pleading filed in a malpractice case is a ___________

a. demurrer

b. bill of particulars

c. counterclaim

d. complaint

2. A formal objection by one of the parties of a lawsuit that the evidence presented by the other party is insufficient to support a suit is a ___________.

a. demurrer

b. countersuit

c. dismissal

3. The legal document that demands more detailed information than is provided in a complaint is a/an ___________.

b. demurrer

c. examination before trial

d. bill of particulars

4. A motion that asks a court to rule that there are no facts in dispute and that the rights of the parties can be determined as a matter of law, on the basis of submitted documents, without the need for a trial is ___________.

a. examination before trial

b. counterclaim

c. bill of particulars

d. summary judgment

5. Questions of law are decided by the ___________.

a. court

b. plaintiff’s attorney

c. defendant’s attorney

d. jury

6. In a civil suit, the burden of proving a case lies with the ___________.

a. defendant

b. plaintiff

c. tort-feasor

d. court

7. Juries decide ___________.

a. questions of fact

b. questions of evidence

c. questions of law

d. both questions of law and questions of fact 

8. The person who brings a civil suit seeking damages or other legal relief is the ___________.

a. judge

b. court

c. plaintiff

d. defendant

9. The legal doctrine that shifts the burden of proof from the plaintiff to the defendant is ___________.

a. demurrer

b. res ipsa loquitur

c. respondeat superior

d. subpoena

10. The order that calls for a written document to be produced by an organization is a ___________.

a. summons

b. writ

c. deposition

d. subpoena duces tecum

11. The sworn statement made by a witness before a trial that can be used as evidence in court is a ___________.

a. testimony

b. summons

c. subpoena

d. deposition

12. An individual whose testimony is required because he or she is a specialist in a particular field of knowledge is a(n) ___________.

a. hypothetical person

b. average individual

c. expert witness

d. witness

13. If an X-ray machine is entered as evidence, it is a form of ___________.

a. demonstrative evidence

b. hearsay

c. circumstantial evidence

d. hearsay evidence

14. That which is used to prove the facts of a case is ___________.

a. hearsay evidence

b. circumstantial evidence

c. evidence

d. testimony

15. An informal discussion during which the judge and opposing attorneys eliminate matters not in dispute, agree on the issues, and settle procedural matters relating to the trial is a(n) ___________.

a. hearing

b. examination before trial

c. deposition

d. pretrial conference

16. A defense in a negligence suit based on legislatively imposed time constraints is ___________.

a. ignorance

b. statute of limitations

c. unintentional act

d. res judicata

17. Comparative negligence generally requires that damages among multiple defendants be divided ___________.

a. equally

b. 60/40

c. 50/50

d. according to fault (the degree of negligence of each party/defendant to a lawsuit)

18. Knowing that a danger exists and voluntarily accepting the risk by taking a chance and exposing oneself to it is ___________.

a. assumption of a risk

b. intervening cause

c. contributory negligence

d. comparative negligence

19. The common law doctrine that holds a physician, for example, responsible for the acts of a nurse in the operating room when the physician directs the nurse to perform a particular medical act in the operating room and the nurse then performs it negligently and consequently injures the patient is the ___________.

a. borrowed servant doctrine

b. res ipsa loquitur

c. Good Samaritan Act

d. statute of limitations

20. The common law doctrine by which the state and federal governments have been immune from liability for harm suffered by the tortious conduct of its employees is ___________.

a. borrowed servant doctrine

b. respondeat superior

c. sovereign immunity

d. captain of the ship doctrine

21. Damages that are awarded to compensate for gross negligence and to deter wrongdoers (e.g., when there is sufficient evidence of the willful and wanton disregard for the rights of others) is ___________.

a. special damages

b. exorbitant damages

c. general damages

d. punitive damages

22. Evidence of what another person has said is ___________.

a. comparative

b. direct

c. hearsay

d. demonstrative

23. A medical record is an example of ___________.

a. documentary evidence

b. circumstantial evidence

c. hearsay evidence

d. expert testimony

24. Evidence furnished by physical things themselves is ___________ evidence.

a. hearsay

b. documentary

c. testimonial

d. demonstrative

25. Evidence that consists of tangible objects to which testimony refers (such as medical instruments and broken infusion needles) is referred to as ___________.

a. documentary

b. real

c. testimonial

d. demonstration

26. The right to a jury trial is guaranteed by the ___________.

a. President

b. Congress

c. U.S. Constitution

d. U.S. Supreme Court

27. The ___________ rule prescribes that well-known facts (e.g., that fractures need prompt attention and that two X-rays of the same patient might show different results) need not be proven, but, rather, they are recognized by the court as fact.

a. common law doctrine

b. hearsay

c. comparative

d. judicial notice

28. The order that calls for a document to be produced by an organization is called a ___________.

a. summons

b. subpoena duces tecum

c. search warrant

d. court request

29. A sworn statement from a witness that can be used as evidence at a trial is called a ___________.

a. countersuit

b. pleading

c. claim

d. deposition

30. ___________ is the process of investigating the facts of a case before trial.

a. Discovery

b. Evidence

c. Expert testimony

d. Bill of particulars