The Law To Know

← Legal Guide Books

Legal Guide Book

Civil Procedure

The Pocket Guide

Every black-letter rule a first-year civil procedure exam actually tests - jurisdiction and venue, pleadings and joinder, discovery and pretrial adjudication, the Erie doctrine and trial, and preclusion and appeals - reduced to its essential elements, one real example each, and the single thing worth remembering under time pressure. No padding, no filler cases, nothing outside the standard curriculum.

5 chapters · ~55 pages · delivered as a PDF, read on any device · $12 one-time

Contents

Chapter 1: Jurisdiction & Venue

Before a court can decide anything, it needs power over both the subject matter and the parties, and the case needs to be in the right place. These threshold questions come first on nearly every exam for a reason - get them wrong and nothing else matters.

  • Subject Matter Jurisdiction - Federal Question
  • Subject Matter Jurisdiction - Diversity
  • Supplemental Jurisdiction
  • Personal Jurisdiction - The Minimum Contacts Test
  • Purposeful Availment vs. Mere Foreseeability
  • Forum Non Conveniens

Chapter 2: Pleadings, Motions & Joinder

Once jurisdiction is settled, a case actually has to be framed - what must a complaint say to survive a motion to dismiss, and who can (or must) be brought into the case alongside the original parties.

  • The Plausibility Pleading Standard
  • Waivable vs. Non-Waivable Defenses
  • Amending Pleadings & Relation Back
  • Permissive Party Joinder
  • Compulsory vs. Permissive Counterclaims
  • Class Actions - Commonality

Chapter 3: Discovery & Pretrial Adjudication

Discovery is where most real litigation actually happens, and the doctrines governing what must be disclosed - and what can be resolved before ever reaching a jury - decide most cases long before trial.

  • Scope of Discovery
  • The Work Product Doctrine
  • Attorney-Client Privilege in the Corporate Context
  • Electronic Discovery & Spoliation
  • Summary Judgment - The Celotex Burden-Shift

Chapter 4: The Erie Doctrine & Trial

A federal court sitting in diversity has to decide which body of law - state or federal - governs each specific question, a genuinely tricky doctrine tested through a real, named sequence of cases. Then trial itself brings its own separate set of rules.

  • Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins
  • The Byrd Balancing Test
  • The Hanna Framework - Direct Conflict
  • The Right to Jury Trial
  • Judgment as a Matter of Law

Chapter 5: Preclusion & Appeals

Once a case ends, two separate doctrines decide what happens next - whether the same or related claims can ever be relitigated, and which orders can actually be appealed before the case is fully over.

  • Claim Preclusion (Res Judicata)
  • Issue Preclusion (Collateral Estoppel)
  • Abandoning Mutuality
  • The Final Judgment Rule & Its Exceptions
  • Appellate Review Standards
  • Full Faith and Credit

Individually Priced

Sold SeparatelyIntroductory Price

Civil Procedure: The Pocket Guide is sold separately

Civil Procedure: The Pocket Guide has its own price and is not included in an All-Access Membership. Unlock it on its own:

This is an early, introductory price for a brand-new product — it’s expected to rise as we add more content. Buy now and it’s yours at today’s rate, forever.

Sign up or log in first, then purchase to unlock this.

This book teaches general doctrine using original hypothetical examples. It does not provide legal advice about any specific situation and does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your own circumstances, consult a licensed attorney.