Post Trial Motions

Once a trial is over and the judge or the jury renders their verdict, the judgment is then formalized by the court in writing. After judgment has been delivered, a post trial motion can be filed by either of the party. A post trial motion is filed after the trial has already completed. Post trial motions may include filing a motion seeking a new trial or if the party feels that the judgment should be nullified or amended. There is also a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV) (Kerley, Hames & Sukys, 2009). In my opinion, I feel that the post trial motions are one of the most essential aspects of civil proceedings. They can give relief where the other procedural set of laws cannot. They are also important to preservation of claims of faults or mistakes for appellate review. On the other hand, a post trial motion that is not brought on time can ruin further proceedings and this may include any subsequent appeal.

A post trial motion that has a ground and is filed within the stipulated time will help the civil trial process as biased judgment is avoided. The primary purpose for post trial motions is acting as a second chance to correct any mistakes of interpretation, overlooked evidence. The motion challenges the legal competence of the evidence that had been presented at trial (Kerley et al., 2009). There are grounds for a post trial motion to go through; if there were any irregularities in the proceedings, any kind of misconduct, new evidence, or errors in the law, a new trial is permissible. However the ultimate decision on whether to grant a new trial, a JNOV, or amending a judgment rests entirely on the discretion of the judge presiding over the trial after a thorough evaluation of the credibility of particulars brought forward.

Reference

Kerley, P. N., Hames, J. B., & Sukys, P. (2009). Civil litigation. Clifton Park, NY: Delmar

Cengage Learning.