미국 민사소송에서의 약식재판(Summary Judgement)

Summary judgment is a procedure by which a party can obtain a final determination on the merits without the necessity of a full trial. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(c) governs the procedural requirements for summary judgment motions in federal court. It states summary judgment is proper when 『the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.』 Under Rule 56, a party may move for summary judgment at any time until thirty days after the close of discovery. The summary judgment process begins with the filing of a motion for summary judgment. Unless a party to the suit files a motion for summary judgment, no court has the power to render a judgment. The motion for summary judgment must expressly present the grounds for summary judgment. Although the main purpose of summary judgment is to avoid unnecessary trials, it also can function to simplify trial. Even if the summary judgment obviates the need for a trial, it does not impinge upon any jury trial rights. This is because the standard for obtaining summary judgment requires in part a finding that there is no fact issue to send to the jury. The court on summary judgment decide that one party necessarily would suceed if the case went to a jury. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56 was amended lagely in 2009. Therefore it is necessary to introduce American summary judgement. Thus this article is studied about its procedure, requirements, burden of proof, order, appeal, etc., in America civil procedure. This article may be helpful to improve our system of civil procedure.