litigator

American  

[lit-i-gey-ter] / ˈlɪt ɪˌgeɪ tər /

noun

1. a courtroom lawyer.

2. a litigant.

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Usage

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.

Etymology

Origin of litigator

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

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

litigator

“It does take the steam out of the narrative that the court is just a bunch of politicians in robes,” said constitutional litigator Elizabeth Price Foley.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

Draper, a longtime business litigator, became a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge in 2012 after being appointed to the position by then California Gov. Jerry Brown.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026

And Supreme Court litigator Neal Katyal dishes about how he mentally prepped for the case that struck down Trump’s tariffs.

From Slate ● May 8, 2026

In arguing his case for punitive damages, Kaley's attorney Mark Lanier - a folksy Texas litigator - had shown the jury a jar of M&Ms.

From BBC ● Mar. 27, 2026

Ted Friedman, the prominent litigator in the 1970s and 1980s, remembers as a child going to concerts with his mother at Carnegie Hall.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell