jsprinkles is 100% correct. Federal courts generally aren't courts of equity (with bankruptcy courts being the sole exception); they're courts of law. They hav

jsprinkles is 100% correct. Federal courts generally aren't courts of equity (with bankruptcy courts being the sole exception); they're courts of law. They have a strictly enforced set of procedural rules the nonobservance of which can result in a claim being dismissed with prejudice or a judgment in your opponent's favor. You could learn anything that a lawyer knows--the material isn't difficult at all. What a lawyer provides, however, is insulation from procedural errors. When a lawyer misses a filing deadline, you might have a cause of action against the lawyer in malpractice. If you, a pro se litigant, miss a filing deadline, you're generally SOL. That's why you shouldn't share what you think you know: the consequences are serious and the nuances are subtle.