Putative means presumed, reputed, or supposed: generally accepted but not established.
- Putative class actions are representative lawsuits filed by named plaintiffs on behalf of a class seeking class certification under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP).
- Once a class has been certified, it is no longer “putative.”
- Putative damages are damages that have been alleged but not yet proven.
- Not to be confused with punitive damages.
- A putative spouse is a person who unknowingly entered into an invalid marriage, believing in good faith that it is a valid marriage.
- The putative spouse doctrine protects the financial and property interests of putative spouses.
- A putative father is the person alleged in a paternity suit to be the biological father of a child with whom there is no established legal relationship.
[Last updated in January of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]