<P> Rules of criminal or civil procedure govern the conduct of a lawsuit in the common law adversarial system of dispute resolution . Procedural rules are constrained and informed by separate statutory laws, case laws, and constitutional provisions that define the rights of the parties to a lawsuit (see especially due process), though the rules generally reflect this legal context on their face . The details of the procedure differ greatly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and often from court to court even within the same jurisdiction . These rules of the particular procedures are very important for litigants to know, because the litigants are the ones who dictate the timing and progression of the lawsuit . Litigants are responsible to obtain the suited result and the timing of reaching this result . Failure to comply with the procedural rules may result in serious limitations that can affect the ability of one to present claims or defenses at any subsequent trial, or even promote the dismissal of the lawsuit altogether . </P> <P> Though the majority of lawsuits are settled before ever reaching a state of trial, they can still be very complicated to litigate . This is particularly true in federal systems, where a federal court may be applying state law (e.g. the Erie doctrine, for example in the United States), or vice-versa . It is also possible for one state to apply the law of another in cases where additionally it may not be clear which level (or location) of court actually has jurisdiction over the claim or personal jurisdiction over the defendant, or whether the plaintiff has standing to participate in a lawsuit . About 98 percent of civil cases in the United States federal courts are resolved without a trial . Domestic courts are also often called upon to apply foreign law, or to act upon foreign defendants, over whom they may not even have the ability to even enforce a judgment if the defendant's assets are theoretically outside their reach . </P> <P> Lawsuits can become additionally complicated as more parties become involved (see joinder). Within a "single" lawsuit, there can be any number of claims and defenses (all based on numerous laws) between any number of plaintiffs or defendants . Each of these participants can bring any number of cross claims and counterclaims against each other, and even bring additional parties into the suit on either side after it progresses . In reality however, courts typically have some power to sever claims and parties into separate actions if it is more efficient to do so . A court can do this if there is not a sufficient overlap of factual issues between the various associates, separating the issues into different lawsuits . </P> <P> The official ruling of a lawsuit can be somewhat misleading because post-ruling outcomes are often not listed on the internet . For example, in the case of William J. Ralph Jr. v. Lind - Waldock & Company (September 1999), one would assume that Mr. Ralph lost the case when in fact, upon review of the evidence, it as found that Mr. Ralph was correct in his assertion that improper activity took place on the part of Lind - Waldock, and Mr. Ralph settled with Lind - Waldock . </P>

Who are the two sides involved in a civil lawsuit