How does an individual file a lawsuit?

[jdr7181]

How can I file multiple lawsuits, both state and federal, on my own? Is there a charge for filing suits? If so, can that charge be waived since I have no money? Where do I learn about filing law suits? I don't even know what the look like or anything. I am running out of time. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Jack

[sedwards]

what state are you in . i will do my best to help you .... I am filing a lawsuit but i have found an attorney that has took my case on a contingency thank god ... My case is closed as far as they know that is dcf. but i have a surprise for them ..

[sedwards]

have you been to www.connecticutdcfwatch.com that sight should help and also thomas is great he has filed a lawsuit against them .i spoke with him and let him know that i would be referring you to him .

[jdr7181]

what state are you in . i will do my best to help you .... I am filing a lawsuit but i have found an attorney that has took my case on a contingency thank god ... My case is closed as far as they know that is dcf. but i have a surprise for them ..

I'm in Texas. I thought I had an attorney, but he backed out and decided he doesn't "have the time" the case would demand.

Jack

[Dazeemay]

I would say your attorney got scared off.

Be sure to do what sedwards said. If you can talk to Thomas it would help.

Call this gentleman or go to his site and see what he says

http://www.paulstuckle.com/

He has posted here quite a bit and he is an attorney that helps parents with cps cases.

He pops in now and again.

[good dad]

Hi Jack..

Paul Stuckle is also in Texas...

There are filing fees for filing lawsuits.. I don't think they would waive them, but I'm not sure..

I think you would want to file your suit in federal court as you aren't dealing with "the same state" that "slanderd you or used defamation(sp?) of character attacts".. The feds stand up for your constitutional and civil rights more then the states so that is why I would file it there..

Bob_Lynn would be one to pm about where to look for sample lawsuit paperwork...I had a couple marked but I can't find the folder right now..

[Bob_Lynn]

You don't file multiple lawsuits, you file one federal complaint and name all who violated your rights in the lawsuits. In the one lawsuit, you can sue the state, the county, cps and everyone involved individually.

The filing fee was unfortunately raised to $250 (from $150) but you can file something called "In Forma Pauperis" which is a form requesting waiver of the fee based on your financial standing. The court will review it and must approve it but will waive the fee unless they reject the form. If you win your suit, you will still have to pay them but hopefully, you win enough money to be able to pay. There are still other fees involved such as the fact that you have to serve the defendants with your federal complaint. You can actually do this via registered or certified mail but a defendant may be able to dispute this kind of service. Service by process server or sheriff is much more costly and the onus is on you to take care of service.

For a sample federal lawsuit, see below:

http://www.pgh.aclu.org/pdf/20031003_underwood-c.pdf

You really have to do some intensive research and know what you're doing and that is difficult for most people who are not trained in the law.

[jdr7181]

You don't file multiple lawsuits, you file one federal complaint and name all who violated your rights in the lawsuits. In the one lawsuit, you can sue the state, the county, cps and everyone involved individually.

Let me just make sure all of what I think I can sue for falls under federal purview:

1. Denial of due process (CPS/state)
2. Slander (Sheriff of Bastrop County)
3. Libel (reporter/major TX newspaper)
4. Wrongful prosecution (Bastrop County DAs Office)
5. Gross negligence (two CPS agents and a Bastrop County Sheriff's detective).
6. Deprivation of rights (Bastrop County Sheriff's office and DAs office).

That's what I an thinking so far, but the facility has a better libel case against media outlets and the comptroller's office, though I don't know if they will pursue it.

The filing fee was unfortunately raised to $250 (from $150) but you can file something called "In Forma Pauperis" which is a form requesting waiver of the fee based on your financial standing.

In Forma Pauperis! That's what I needed to know. Thanks.

The court will review it and must approve it but will waive the fee unless they reject the form. If you win your suit, you will still have to pay them but hopefully, you win enough money to be able to pay. There are still other fees involved such as the fact that you have to serve the defendants with your federal complaint. You can actually do this via registered or certified mail but a defendant may be able to dispute this kind of service. Service by process server or sheriff is much more costly and the onus is on you to take care of service.

I can't serve the defendents myself, can I? I mean, just show up and hand them the paperwork and announce, "You have been served!" I can't do that? Can I have someone who is not a plaintiff in the case do it? A family friend who will serve them for no charge to me?

For a sample federal lawsuit, see below:

http://www.pgh.aclu.org/pdf/20031003_underwood-c.pdf

You really have to do some intensive research and know what you're doing and that is difficult for most people who are not trained in the law.

I bet. I don't know what to do. I wish I could find an attorney to take a serious look at this. Anyway, let me know what you think when and if you get a chance. Thanks for the feedback.

Jack

[Bob_Lynn]

What you can sue for is violations of your civil rights under color of law and include other federal and state law claims. It's called a Section 1983 suit. In the complaint, you list all the things they did which caused your civil rights to be violated and all the laws you believe they broke, federal and state and local.

You can either serve the defendants yourself or have anyone over the age of 18 serve them, but you may have to prove they were served if they dispute it.

In another post, you asked if you need to file a notice of intent to sue. I never heard of filing a notice of intent to sue and I certainly never did any such thing. Perhaps you mean a letter of intent, if that's the case, it's up to you but it's not necessary and I doubt that it's in your best interest to do that. Attorneys sometimes do that to threaten whoever they want to threaten.

[jdr7181]

What you can sue for is violations of your civil rights under color of law and include other federal and state law claims. It's called a Section 1983 suit. In the complaint, you list all the things they did which caused your civil rights to be violated and all the laws you believe they broke, federal and state and local.

Ok. Making good progress here and am drafting the suit as we speak, but I have a question regarding Section 1983. It reads in part, that I can sue them for deprivation of rights " . . . except that in any action brought against a judicial officer for an act or omission taken in such officer's judicial capacity, injunctive relief shall not be granted unless a declaratory decree was violated or declaratory relief was unavailable."

I want to be able to sue the prosecutor for wrongful prosecution as they should have known early on that the boy recanted (nine days before the indictment, he recanted directly to the sheriff's deputy AND the lead CPS investigator) and I want to sue the Sheriff's office for dereliction of duty (or something like that) for whitholdging this exculpatory information from the prosecution, but I am assuming at least the prosecutor would be considered a "judicial officer." How can I determine whether "a declaratory decree was violated or declaratory relief was unavailable?" Is the Sheriff or his deputy considered "judicial officers?" Is "injunctive relief" what I am seeking through this lawsuit? Is that just a fancy term for damages? I'll do some research on my own, but if you happen to know about this, any input would be greatly appreciated.

And I am assuming that I can't fold a defamation of character suit (specifically libel) into this Section 1983 suit based on the paper's coverage of that investigation or the indictment of me, right? That has to be done separately in a state court, doesn't it?

Here's why I am asking: In an August 14, 2004 news article appearing on the front page of the Dallas Morning News, Robert Garrett stated (in the opening paragraph of the article) that CPS "removed 22 foster boys from a Bastrop County wilderness camp Friday after the local sheriff said two former camp employees sexually assaulted youngsters at the privately run facility." The article goes on to name me specifically.

Now, he doesn't quote the sheriff directly, but if that IS what the sheriff said, then it is slanderous. And if Mr. Garret was paraphrasing the sheriff then he comitted libel (as best I can tell). It's ok to say, ". . . two former camp employees allegedly sexually assaulted youngsters . . ." or ". . . two former camp employees are accused of sexually assaulting youngsters . . ." But to say, ". . . two former camp employees sexually assaulted youngsters . . ." before either counselor had even been indicted, much less tried and convicted of the crimes--now that's slander! So the question is, can that charge be included in this federal suit? There's a one-year statute of limitation on this so I only have a few weeks left to file on it. If I file it in the wrong venue and the judge kicks it out, I can't refile in state court because the statute of limitations will have run out and the court has already ruled that you don't get extra time to file in state court if you wrongly assumed jurisdiction in the federal court and filed it there. Now, if the judge rules the defamation suit should be handled separately by a lower court for a reason other than lack of jurisdiction, yes, perhaps, but not if he doesn't have jurisdiction in the first place.

You can either serve the defendants yourself or have anyone over the age of 18 serve them, but you may have to prove they were served if they dispute it.

I'm pretty sure in Texas that it has to be served by someone over the age of 18 AND someone who is NOT a party to the suit. That's what I have read. Am I misreading something? I can also ask they sign a waiver of service and if they refused, formally serve them and seek the costs of that service from them.

In another post, you asked if you need to file a notice of intent to sue. I never heard of filing a notice of intent to sue and I certainly never did any such thing. Perhaps you mean a letter of intent, if that's the case, it's up to you but it's not necessary and I doubt that it's in your best interest to do that. Attorneys sometimes do that to threaten whoever they want to threaten.

Good! Thanks for everything. You're a lot of help and I truly appreciate it!

Jack