courts and procedure

Standing, or locus standi, is the capacity of a party to bring a lawsuit in court. To have standing, a party must demonstrate a sufficient connection to and harm from the law or action being challenged. 

• courts
• Article III
• lawsuit
• federal courts
• state courts

State supreme court is a general term referring to the highest court in a state court system. The term may be used informally even if the official name of the court contains different terminology. 

[Last reviewed in June of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]

A statute of limitations is any law that bars claims after a certain period of time passes after an injury. The period of time varies depending on the jurisdiction and the type of claim. 

A statute of repose is any law that bars claims after some action by the defendant, even if the plaintiff has not yet been injured. Since the time period begins to run from the date of the defendant's action even if the injury is yet to occur, a statute of repose is generally more favorable to defendants than a statute of limitations.

Statutory construction, also known as statutory interpretation, is the process by which courts interpret and apply legislation.

• federal statute
• STATUTE
• courts
• legislative history

Statutory damages are a type of damages awarded in a successful claim to compensate for an injury or loss, whose amount is pre-established by statute.

Statutory interpretation, also known as statutory construction, is the process by which courts interpret and apply legislation.

Statutory offer of settlement is a monetary offer extended to a plaintiff by a defendant to settle all disputes before trial. Usually the plaintiff has a short period of time depending on the state and case to accept the offer. If the plaintiff accepts the offer, the settlement will be filed with the court and will be enforceable.

Stay is an action taken by a court to stop a legal proceeding or the actions of a party. A stay most commonly is issued by a court as a stay of proceedings in order to stop litigation from continuing, and they normally are only temporary. A court will do this for many reasons such as if there is another proceeding occurring that will affect the present one or if a party must do something before the proceeding can continue. 

Stay of execution is directed by a court to stop some form of enforcement action. A stay of execution can apply in many circumstances like stopping the sale of property in bankruptcy or the execution of a death penalty. When a stay of execution may be given will differ based on the jurisdiction or topic, but stays are often given pending an appeal or when changes in circumstances call for a new trial or bankruptcy proceedings.