litigation

noun

lit·​i·​ga·​tion ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən 

plural litigations

: the act, process, or practice of settling a dispute in a court of law : the act or process of litigating

an issue that has been in litigation for years

an attorney who specializes in the litigation of property disputes

The American Judicial System generally limits the filing of lawsuits to individuals with a personal stake in the litigation, but there are instances when litigants cannot themselves prosecute an action.

—Jonathan Mahler

also : a legal action or proceeding (such as a lawsuit)

"You can't realize how much it costs to run one of these litigations. To get a battery of lawyers into a courtroom and do all the planning … and so on costs $500,000."

—Gordon Gould

Examples of litigation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Without offering details, Newsom urged the State Legislature to set aside additional funding for the California Department of Justice in anticipation of a potential flurry of litigation against the Trump administration. —Ethan Varian, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024

The lawsuit followed conversations of litigation by the ACLU of Kentucky and delays of up to a couple of hours at polling locations in Louisville like Beechmont Community Center and Norton Commons Elementary. —Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 5 Nov. 2024

There are currently more than 200 voting and election cases pending across the nation, according to Marc Elias, a leader of Vice President Harris’s election litigation efforts. —Juliann Ventura, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024

Should the emphasis be on the most restrictive geographies to minimize the risk of non-compliance or litigation? —Brian Walker, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1612, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing litigation

• in litigation