Also known as: pend · pends · pended · pendency · pendencies · pendent · in pendency
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A matter or proceeding that has been initiated but has not yet been resolved or concluded by a court or other tribunal.
Judge Ramirez comments publicly on a contract dispute between Premier Manufacturing and a supplier. The comment occurs after the complaint is filed but before any hearing. The judicial conduct commission finds the statement risks affecting the outcome because the case remains unresolved.
Attorney Patel advances living expenses to client Phuong Pham while Pham's personal injury suit is unresolved. The advance occurs after filing but before trial. Ethics counsel determines the payment violates the prohibition on financial assistance tied to unresolved litigation.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Defendant Precision Tools receives a state court complaint alleging breach of contract. It files a notice of removal in the federal district court covering the county where the state action was filed. The notice is accepted because the underlying action is still active in that state forum.
Pamela Phillips files for support payments from her husband while their divorce action remains unresolved. The court grants temporary alimony based on her need and his ability to pay. The order issues before any final decree because the marital dissolution proceeding is still open.
Defendant Pierre Poulin is arrested in one district while his indictment for fraud is active in another. He submits a written request to plead guilty in the arrest district. Both U.S. attorneys approve the transfer because the original charging document is still unresolved in the first district.
In a civil fraud suit, the plaintiff offers a prior felony conviction against defendant Paige Porter to prove an essential fact. The conviction was entered after a guilty plea and remains subject to appeal. The court admits the judgment even though the underlying criminal case is still unresolved on appeal.
The pendency of an appeal may be shown but does not affect admissibility of a qualifying conviction judgment.
A lawyer may advance court costs and expenses of litigation even when the matter remains unresolved, with repayment contingent on outcome.
The notice must be filed in the federal district court for the district and division where the state action is still active.
A judge may not make public statements reasonably expected to affect the outcome or impair fairness of a matter that remains unresolved in any court.
A spouse not receiving support may petition for alimony and child support in a pending divorce action, with amount based on need and ability to pay.
…Flast v. Cohen , 392 U. S. 83, 101 (1968), and Sierra Club v. Morton , 405 U. S. 727, 732 (1972)? And what effect did the pendency of criminal abortion charges against Dr. Hallford in state court have upon the propriety of the federal court's granting relief to him as a plaintiff-intervenor? A. Jane Roe. Despite…