litigator

[lit-i-gey-ter]

noun

1. a courtroom lawyer.

2. a litigant.

Word History and Origins

Origin of litigator¹

First recorded in 1900–05; litigate ( def. ) + -or ² ( def. )

When To Use

What does litigator mean?

A litigator is a lawyer, especially one who specializes in civil cases.To litigate is to engage in a legal proceeding, such as a lawsuit. It can mean to bring a lawsuit or to contest one. The word especially refers to what litigators do in such a proceeding.Less commonly, litigator can refer to a person engaged in a lawsuit. However, a more common word for this is litigant.The process of engaging in a legal proceeding is called litigation. To be in litigation typically means to be engaged in a civil legal proceeding (as opposed to a criminal one, in which one is said to be on trial).Example: He was a prominent litigator in the ’80s before he became a prosecutor.