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lawsuit

American  
[law-soot] / ˈlɔˌsut /

noun

  1. a case in a court of law involving a claim, complaint, etc., by one party against another; suit at law.

lawsuit British  
/ -ˌsjuːt, ˈlɔːˌsuːt /

noun

  1. a proceeding in a court of law brought by one party against another, esp a civil action

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of lawsuit

First recorded in 1615–25; law 1 + suit

Compare meaning

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In June 2024, the Enterprises and their partners filed a $600 million lawsuit, accusing Shvo of shoddy construction that left the club “dimly lit and aesthetically unappealing”— and burdened by leaky showers.

From The Wall Street Journal

Wagner is one of the first people to file a lawsuit against the bank, suing for damages for what his lawyer, Daniel Kuhlmann, has called lax security.

From BBC

At the start of Operation Metro Surge, at least 100 DHS agents were operating in the Twin Cities area, according to lawsuits.

From Salon

The UC workers’ lawsuit will continue to be litigated in federal district court, where it is in the discovery process and eventually could move to trial.

From Los Angeles Times

They say they respected the families’ rights to seek accountability in their own ways, but they had never expected the lawsuits to blame their son.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.