Also known as: on the merit · merits decision · decision on the merits
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A judgment or decision reached after a court has considered the substantive claims, evidence, and arguments of the parties rather than resolving the matter on procedural or jurisdictional grounds.
Omega Energy sues a supplier under the wrong corporate name. After the correct entity receives timely notice of the suit and the claims arise from the same transaction, the court permits the amendment. The new defendant can defend on the merits without prejudice because it had adequate opportunity to prepare its substantive response.
Osprey Aviation seeks a preliminary injunction to stop a competitor from using disputed flight routes. The court weighs the probability that Osprey will succeed on the merits against the threat of irreparable harm and the public interest before deciding whether to grant relief.
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Olivia Owens sues in State A and loses because the statute of limitations has run. She then files the identical claim in federal court. The federal court treats the prior dismissal as not on the merits for claim-preclusion purposes and allows the second action to proceed.
Olympia Steel's board member Otis Olsen defeats a shareholder derivative suit after trial. Because Olsen was wholly successful on the merits in defending the proceeding brought against him in his corporate capacity, the corporation must indemnify him for his expenses.
Omar Olson files suit but repeatedly misses discovery deadlines and fails to appear at a scheduled status conference. The court dismisses the action under Rule 41(b). The dismissal operates as an adjudication on the merits and bars relitigation of the same claim.
Octavia Okonkwo and her employer are sued together for the same workplace injury. After a full trial on the merits, the jury finds the employer liable but returns a defense verdict for Okonkwo. The court may properly enter judgment against one defendant and in favor of the other because liability of one does not depend on liability of the other.
A dismissal operates as an adjudication on the merits unless it rests on lack of jurisdiction, improper venue, or failure to join a required party. Jurisdictions may treat statute-of-limitations dismissals differently for preclusion purposes.
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Yes. A corporation must indemnify a director who was wholly successful on the merits or otherwise in defending a proceeding brought because of the director's corporate role.
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The new party must receive notice of the action within the Rule 4(m) period so that it will not be prejudiced in defending on the merits.
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…did not have standing. It concluded that, with respect to the requests for a declaratory judgment, abstention was not warranted. On the merits, the District Court held that the "fundamental right of single women and married persons to choose whether to have children is protected by the Ninth Amendment, through the Fourteenth…