Also known as: frivolous claim · frivolous lawsuit
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A legal contention unsupported by existing law or a good-faith argument for its extension, modification, or reversal and lacking any reasonable factual basis that could be developed through discovery.
Felicia Fuentes sued Franklin Foundry alleging multiple overlapping theories of liability arising from a supply contract, some of which rested on pure speculation without factual support. At the initial pretrial conference the judge directed counsel to identify which theories rested on a reasonable basis and to withdraw the unsupported ones. The court then entered an order limiting the case to the remaining nonfrivolous claims and defenses.
Farid Farahani asked his lawyer to sue a streaming service for copyright infringement based solely on the shared use of a common chord progression and a general theme of loss. The lawyer reviewed the songs, confirmed the absence of any shared protectable expression or evidence of access, and concluded that no colorable argument for extension of existing doctrine existed. The lawyer therefore declined to file the complaint.
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A claim is frivolous if it lacks any basis in law and fact that is not frivolous, including a good-faith argument for changing existing law. The standard is objective and applies even when the client urges filing.
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Yes. The court may use the conference to formulate and simplify issues and to eliminate frivolous claims or defenses before discovery or trial proceeds.
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No. Noncontrolling or distinguishable authority does not create a reasonable basis when the facts fail to satisfy settled elements such as substantial similarity and access.
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Filing exposes the lawyer to professional-discipline sanctions under Rule 3.1 and may also trigger Rule 11 sanctions or other litigation-driven controls.
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