California | Civil Litigation
Legal Question
Defendant Required to Testify in Civil Unlimited?
Hello,
In a civil unlimited trial in California Superior Court, is a defendant required to testify? Is the plaintiff able to compel the defendant to testify? My mother and I are defendants in such a trial, scheduled for the end of this month. We cannot afford a lawyer, and have been unable to find a pro bono lawyer after 14 months of searching. The plaintiff falsely believes he is the son of a famous celebrity and that my mother and I have conspired with the famous entertainer's actress/producer children to defraud him of his ''true identity.'' We have not. The plaintiff is representing himself. My mother is 75-years-old, not in good health and terrified of the plaintiff (for numerous reasons I won't go into here). Not only do I not want to see her abused on the stand by this person, I am worried about her breaking down, or worse, having an attack or seizure. We cannot afford to take her to a doctor, but she has lost so much weight and is in general frail condition, which is very worrisome to me. The plaintiff has spent almost a decade stalking us, and in the last 14 months his actions have wiped out our finances, reputations, my job, her health, etc. In a word, it has been horrendous. Thank you for your help.
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