How to Sue Someone Due to a Labor Law
- 1). Determine if your claim should be filed in federal or state court. The easiest way to check this is to check whether the federal court has jurisdiction first (see Resources for U. S. Code). If you are still unsure, you can contact the federal clerk's office, and it will direct you to someone who can give you legal advice regarding jurisdiction. Only an attorney can give this advice, but some courts do have an attorney on staff for some legal questions.
- 2). Draft a complaint. The complaint must list the court, leave a place for a case number (you will get this when the case is filed), list all of the plaintiffs and defendants and be titled (Complaint). A federal pleading must be formatted according to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (F.R.C.P.) (see Resources). For questions regarding anything you do not understand in the F.R.C.P., you must contact an attorney or legal aid. The clerk of court and any non-attorney cannot answer questions regarding the F.R.C.P.
- 3). Separate each count in the complaint. If you are suing for discrimination and libel, discrimination should be one count and libel should be the other count. When drafting the complaint, refer to the U. S. Code and case law to back up your claim.
- 4). Complete a Federal Civil Cover Sheet and a Summons. Make three copies of each document. File the Complaint with the Federal Clerk of Court. The clerk will keep the original document and will stamp the other three documents. Some clerks require the original document plus a second copy for the Judge. A second copy will be stamped in. Have this copy served, along with the summons, on the defendant. If there is more than one defendant, you will need an extra copy of the complaint and an extra summons for each defendant. The third copy is for your records.
- 5). Depending on your state, either the sheriff or a process server can serve the complaint on the defendant (the clerk's office will be able to tell you who can serve the complaint). Have the appropriate person serve the complaint on the defendant.
- 6). If you find you can only file in your state's civil court, you will need to follow the same process, except you will find the rules in your state's rules of civil procedure. The clerk of court in your county will have samples of documents that need to be filed in the state's civil court.
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