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This module explains the research you should do in every potential new case between the time of the PNC intake telephone call and the first meeting with an attorney in your office. Other modules will explain specific additional research that should be done in specific types of cases.

Pre-consultation research

People like to hire professionals who care about their cases and who are obviously prepared. Prior to the initial consultation, you will want to learn as much as you quickly can. You do not want to spend hours researching a case you may never get. At the same time, you have to invest more than zero prior to the consultation. The good news is that most of these questions can be answered through the District Clerk's web site in most populous counties.

Court posture mindmap

Mindmap outline of pre-consultation research topics.
Mindmap illustration of topics to research prior to consultation meeting.

The filing

You will want to know as much as you can about the status of any pleadings that have been filed.

  • Get a copy of the pleadings and note what is being claimed and start thinking through possible defenses.
  • Pay close attention to the status of service. Just because someone is in possession of pleadings does not mean that he or she has been properly served in compliance with the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. If the respondent has been served, has he or she filed an answer? What is the answer date See , Rules 15 and 99 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure ?
  • You will also want to know if any intervenors or necessary parties have been brought into the litigation and served. For example, if the OAG has been involved in modifying or enforcing child support at any time in this case, then the OAG is a necessary party to any future proceedings involving child support and therefore must be served. In some districts, e.g. Dallas County, there is a Domestic Relations Office ( DRO    ) that stands in the place of the the OAG in enforcement matters.
  • You will also want to know who filed the lawsuit, if it has already been filed, and whether the filing fees have been paid.

Again, the District Clerk's registry of actions can answer most of these questions. If the District Clerk's office does not have an on-line registry of actions, then you will need to narrow your issues and call the District Clerk's office and ask one of the deputy clerks for information about the case.

Pending hearings

It is critical that you know about any pending hearings. This is one question that you should answer before the consultation meeting. If you cannot find out whether there are any pending hearings from the District Clerk's web site, you must call the District Clerk to find out.

  • Has proper notice of the hearing been given? In general you are entitled to 60 days' notice prior to a DWOP    setting Dismissal for want of prosecution is authorized by rule 165a of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. [***CITE FOR NOTICE***] , 45 days' notice prior to the initial trial setting Rule 245 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure , 21 days' notice prior to a hearing or ruling on a motion for summary judgment Rule 166a(c) of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure , 10 days' notice prior to a hearing on a motion to enforce child support Section 157.062(c) of the Texas Family Code , and 3 days' notice prior to most other hearings Rule 21(b) of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. .
  • If there are pending hearings, you need to determine whether you have enough time to prepare and whether your calendar will permit you to attend the hearing.
  • Finally, if you can easily make the determination, try to see whether all other parties have been noticed on any pending hearing.

Questions & Answers

A golfer on a fairway is 70 m away from the green, which sits below the level of the fairway by 20 m. If the golfer hits the ball at an angle of 40° with an initial speed of 20 m/s, how close to the green does she come?
Aislinn Reply
cm
tijani
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John Reply
what is physics
Siyaka Reply
A mouse of mass 200 g falls 100 m down a vertical mine shaft and lands at the bottom with a speed of 8.0 m/s. During its fall, how much work is done on the mouse by air resistance
Jude Reply
Can you compute that for me. Ty
Jude
what is the dimension formula of energy?
David Reply
what is viscosity?
David
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emma Reply
what is chemistry
Youesf Reply
what is inorganic
emma
Chemistry is a branch of science that deals with the study of matter,it composition,it structure and the changes it undergoes
Adjei
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Adjanou
chemistry could also be understood like the sexual attraction/repulsion of the male and female elements. the reaction varies depending on the energy differences of each given gender. + masculine -female.
Pedro
A ball is thrown straight up.it passes a 2.0m high window 7.50 m off the ground on it path up and takes 1.30 s to go past the window.what was the ball initial velocity
Krampah Reply
2. A sled plus passenger with total mass 50 kg is pulled 20 m across the snow (0.20) at constant velocity by a force directed 25° above the horizontal. Calculate (a) the work of the applied force, (b) the work of friction, and (c) the total work.
Sahid Reply
you have been hired as an espert witness in a court case involving an automobile accident. the accident involved car A of mass 1500kg which crashed into stationary car B of mass 1100kg. the driver of car A applied his brakes 15 m before he skidded and crashed into car B. after the collision, car A s
Samuel Reply
can someone explain to me, an ignorant high school student, why the trend of the graph doesn't follow the fact that the higher frequency a sound wave is, the more power it is, hence, making me think the phons output would follow this general trend?
Joseph Reply
Nevermind i just realied that the graph is the phons output for a person with normal hearing and not just the phons output of the sound waves power, I should read the entire thing next time
Joseph
Follow up question, does anyone know where I can find a graph that accuretly depicts the actual relative "power" output of sound over its frequency instead of just humans hearing
Joseph
"Generation of electrical energy from sound energy | IEEE Conference Publication | IEEE Xplore" ***ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/7150687?reload=true
Ryan
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Maurice Reply
what are the types of wave
Maurice
answer
Magreth
progressive wave
Magreth
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Muhammad Reply
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Mohammed
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Mujahid
A string is 3.00 m long with a mass of 5.00 g. The string is held taut with a tension of 500.00 N applied to the string. A pulse is sent down the string. How long does it take the pulse to travel the 3.00 m of the string?
yasuo Reply
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Source:  OpenStax, Handling texas child support enforcement cases. OpenStax CNX. Jul 20, 2015 Download for free at http://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11847/1.2
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