Also known as: actions · actio · actionable · actionare · lawsuit · suit · cause of action
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A civil or criminal judicial proceeding brought to enforce or protect a right or redress a wrong. The proceeding terminates upon entry of a judgment or decree.
Albert Allen faced criminal charges after assaulting a bystander during an episode of severe mental illness. His attorney argued that Allen could not control his actions because of the illness. The court considered whether the lack of control entitled him to acquittal in the action.
Avalon Pharmaceuticals defaulted on its mortgage payments to Atlas Ventures. Atlas initiated a foreclosure action to terminate Avalon's equity of redemption and obtain the property. The mortgage terms dictated whether the proceeding would proceed judicially or by power of sale.
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Alice Atkins and other investors considered filing individual securities claims against Arcadia Retail. The court evaluated whether the class members' interests in controlling separate actions outweighed the benefits of a single class proceeding.
Andre Antoine offered testimony that a corporate officer knew of the fraud at the time of the transaction. The court assessed whether the testimony concerned a fact of consequence in determining the action for securities violations.
Anika Anand's client insisted on pursuing a scheme the lawyer believed was fraudulent in an ongoing contract dispute. The lawyer moved to withdraw from the action because the client persisted in the course involving the lawyer's services.
Austin Abbott sued federal officers for an alleged unlawful search, claiming a right to relief directly under the Constitution. The court examined whether the action arose under federal law even without an express statutory cause of action.
An action is a judicial proceeding that, if pursued to conclusion, results in a judgment or decree. It enforces rights or redresses wrongs through the court system.
Yes. The test excuses conduct when mental illness prevents the defendant from controlling actions or conforming to the law, leading to acquittal in the criminal action.
Foreclosure ends the mortgagor's equity of redemption and transfers the property or its value to the mortgagee through judicial, nonjudicial, or strict procedures governed by the mortgage or statute.
The court considers whether class members have strong interests in individually controlling prosecution or defense of separate actions when deciding if a class action is superior.
A fact is of consequence when it bears on the outcome of the proceeding, satisfying the relevance requirement for admission of evidence.
Withdrawal is permitted when the client persists in a course involving the lawyer's services that the lawyer reasonably believes is criminal or fraudulent.
…War to place a person on the pension list. The decision was not that a mandamus would not lie to the head of a department as to actions enjoined by law but that in that case the mandamus ought not to issue if the report did not confer a legal right. That doctrine is not novel now advanced. It is true the mandamus now…