Trial and Post-Trial

A trial proceeds through jury selection, opening statements, the plaintiff's case-in-chief, the defendant's case, possible rebuttal, closing arguments, jury instructions, deliberation, and verdict. Bench trials omit jury-specific phases but follow a similar evidentiary presentation structure.

Post-trial motions include renewed judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50(b), new trial under Rule 59 based on errors or against the weight of evidence, and remittitur or additur to adjust damages. These motions preserve issues for appeal and provide the trial court an opportunity to correct errors.

Now called judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50(a), it is granted when the evidence permits only one reasonable conclusion. It can be sought after the opposing party has been fully heard and must be renewed post-trial under Rule 50(b) to preserve the issue for appeal.

Damages are typically determined by the jury based on evidence presented, expert testimony, and jury instructions on applicable legal standards. Judges may modify awards through remittitur or additur, and post-trial motions can challenge the sufficiency of the damages evidence.

Fair use is a defense that permits limited use of copyrighted material without permission. Courts consider four factors: the purpose and character of use (commercial vs. educational, transformative vs. copying), the nature of the copyrighted work, the amount used, and the effect on the market. Fair use is highly fact-specific.

For works created today by individual authors, copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years. Works made for hire and anonymous/pseudonymous works are protected for 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter. Older works may have different terms.

Yes, software code is protected by copyright as a literary work. Both source code and object code can be registered. However, copyright protects the expression of ideas, not the underlying functionality—patent protection may be more appropriate for novel methods and processes implemented in software.

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