General Litigation Glossary
GLOSSARY
ANSWER: the defendant's written response to plaintiff's complaint; failure to answer generally results in a default judgment for the plaintiff
COMPLAINT: the plaintiff's written request to the court outlining grievances against the defendant and asking for some remedy or relief
CROSS-COMPLAINT: the defendant's written request to the court outlining grievances against the plaintiff and asking for some remedy or relief
CROSS-COMPLAINANT: the party who files a cross-complaint; generally the original defendant
CROSS-DEFENDANT: the party against whom a cross-complaint is filed; generally the original plaintiff
DEFENDANT: the party against whom the plaintiff files the original complaint
DEMURRER: a motion asking the court to dismiss the complaint or part of the complaint based on a legal deficiency; must be made before an answer is filed
DISCOVERY: the seeking of facts pertinent to the case
FILED: written documents submitted to the court presenting grievances or requesting the court impose an order on the other party
MOTION: a written request to the court for an order
PLAINTIFF: the party who filed the original complaint
SERVED: after a document is filed, a copy must be delivered or mailed to the other parties to the case; all parties must have notice of all requests of the court
SUMMONS: on the filing of a complaint, the court issues its summons notifying the other party of the complaint and informing that it has so many days (30) to answer the complaint
TENTATIVE: a court's initial ruling on a motion; tentative's may be changed after the court has heard oral argument by the parties