Skip to main content
search

Defendant

In a civil matter, the party sued by the plaintiff; in a criminal matter, the party who is prosecuted.

See Civil procedure, Criminal procedure.

Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary

The person against whom a lawsuit is filed. In some types of cases (such as divorce) a defendant may be called a respondent.

Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary.

August 19, 2010, 5:14 pm