What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Iowa
Using the Iowa Courts Online Search ( Iowa Courts Online Search ), filings are accessible to the public, online. In a case I'm interested in there's an Order setting a Hearing with the abbreviation "FP" in the comments section, followed by the scheduled date/time - I can't figure out what FP stands for though.
Here's what it looks like in context, which may give a better idea:
Event
ORDER SETTING HEARING
*****Comments: FP: 11/4/2008 10:00AM
ORDER SETTING TRIAL
*****Comments: T: 10/29/2008 9:30AM
**************PT: 10/7/2008 9:30AM
(the asterisks are only placeholders to keep the indents shown in the filings)
Now, clearly, PT stands for 'pretrial,' and T stands for 'trial,' but what would FP stand for? The Order Setting Hearing wasn't added to the filings until after the Pretrial occurred.
The defendant owes me money, but has until 10/31 to pay me, so I'm hoping to get a better idea of what FP would mean in order to gain a better understanding of whether or not I should expect to collect on the invoice. The charge is for Possession of Controlled Substance (marijuana) - and the only thing I can think of that FP could stand for is "Federal Prosecutor" - could that be correct, or is there something else? I have no idea how much he was in possession of, but there wasn't a story in the news, so I'm assuming it wasn't enough to attract the attention of a Federal Prosecutor, but I could be wrong, or maybe I'm on a wrong train of thought. I'm unfamiliar with criminal proceedings - how does a Hearing differ from a Trial, in this case? Also, would the Hearing occur after the trial, or will the hearing either be moved up, or the trial delayed?
Thanks for any input
Using the Iowa Courts Online Search ( Iowa Courts Online Search ), filings are accessible to the public, online. In a case I'm interested in there's an Order setting a Hearing with the abbreviation "FP" in the comments section, followed by the scheduled date/time - I can't figure out what FP stands for though.
Here's what it looks like in context, which may give a better idea:
Event
ORDER SETTING HEARING
*****Comments: FP: 11/4/2008 10:00AM
ORDER SETTING TRIAL
*****Comments: T: 10/29/2008 9:30AM
**************PT: 10/7/2008 9:30AM
(the asterisks are only placeholders to keep the indents shown in the filings)
Now, clearly, PT stands for 'pretrial,' and T stands for 'trial,' but what would FP stand for? The Order Setting Hearing wasn't added to the filings until after the Pretrial occurred.
The defendant owes me money, but has until 10/31 to pay me, so I'm hoping to get a better idea of what FP would mean in order to gain a better understanding of whether or not I should expect to collect on the invoice. The charge is for Possession of Controlled Substance (marijuana) - and the only thing I can think of that FP could stand for is "Federal Prosecutor" - could that be correct, or is there something else? I have no idea how much he was in possession of, but there wasn't a story in the news, so I'm assuming it wasn't enough to attract the attention of a Federal Prosecutor, but I could be wrong, or maybe I'm on a wrong train of thought. I'm unfamiliar with criminal proceedings - how does a Hearing differ from a Trial, in this case? Also, would the Hearing occur after the trial, or will the hearing either be moved up, or the trial delayed?
Thanks for any input