My Day in Court, maybe not

I recently was told about couple who had a grievance with their home builder and filed suit in small claims court.  Excited about the possibilities of finally get their day in court and resolving their issues with the home builder their day went from a day of hope to their worst nightmare.  With out getting into all to details, the small claims judge ruled on a motion to dismiss before any evidence was heard.  After reviewing the documents related to the motion, the judge ruled in favor of the defendant home builder, case closed. 

Well, you can image how the homeowner felt, a huge slap in the face disappointed in the legal systems, and a sence of complete failure.  Fortunately, they can appeal this ruling but it still stings when because of some formalities one does not get his chance to air their side of the story.

Is there a moral to this story, well maybe NOT. No one will really know if an attorney could have done much better. So the fact that they were representing themselves is not the issue.  I would suggest that this outcome may never have been avoided.  There are so many times when judges are confronted by difficult situation and if they can find an easy way out they take it.  That could have been the case here.  Had the judge ruled against the defendant and the trial would have gone forward, the judge at the end of the trial may have had a really hard decision.  However, he was given a get out of jail card or took the road frequently traveled and out of convenience took it.  Is this really what we want our judiciary doing. I would say not.

I guess this has become more of a commentary rather than anything really legal but you all should be aware that the legal system is not always fair.  Sometime he who has the biggest pocket book and can basically bleed the other party to death or until they must accept a less amount or even no amount at all.

Attorneys sometimes can level the playing field but in this situation it may not have mattered. I guess what I am say is even the best attorney are no match sometimes for the judicial bureaucracy. However, it never hurts to retain an attorney.

So to everyone out there that feels that they have been wrong, don't give up hope.  These folks I mentioned above are going to appeal the small claims judges ruling, so hopefully they will get their day in court and at least be able to present their story.  That is all they really want is to tell their story, if then the judge disagrees at least they were heard. I wish them the best of luck.

If you are going to court and would like some advice on how to handle your case, the Foulger Law group is available to answer questions or even be retained to help you put to together an argument for court.  Don't get caught off guard. You can contact Jason Foulger at 801-623-6766 in Provo and 801-682-1199 in Salt Lake.