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party to the action

party to the action

1 7.9
Someone directly involved in a court case, as plaintiff or defendant
  • noun
  • Formal
translation icon : parte en el proceso
  • Every party to the action must adhere to the court's schedule and requirements.

Examples

  • The other driver was still a party to the action.

    Blog text (5)
  • The court would then simultaneously enter the judgment and announce the amount of damages for which each PRP that is a party to the action is responsible.

    Academic text (1991)
  • They also would try to ensure that as many other PRPs as they could join were parties to the action, in order to reduce their individual liability to the greatest extent possible.

    Academic text (1991)
  • Of course, there are a number of unique considerations related to ITC actions, including the need to establish a domestic industry, an independent government attorney who is a party to the action, and the possibility of presidential override.

    Blog text (9)
  • These varied encounters placed relationships under scrutiny as each party to the action reflected on their roles, and each party discovered latent meanings, as well as their own power to toy with the structure.

    Academic text (1993)
  • There is a positive obligation to produce documents, particularly under Ontario Rule 30.02(1), which states that "every document relating to any matter in issue in an action that is or has been in possession, control, or power of a party to the action shall be disclosed, as provided in Rule 30, whether or not privilege is claimed in respect of that document."

    Academic text (1999)
  • The plaintiff and defendant are both considered parties to the action in this lawsuit.

  • As a party to the action, she had the right to present evidence in court.

Synonyms

party
vsparty to the action
  • Specialized
195 7.3

A person or group involved in a court case

is the more formal and specific legal phrase for that role
litigant
vsparty to the action
  • Specialized
9 7.7

A party in a court case who sues or is sued

is a broader term for anyone in legal proceedings not only lawsuits

Antonyms

305 2.8

A person who watches and notices things, often to give expert opinion

84 3.4

A person who watches an event but does not take part

Surface Forms

Morphology

party + to + the + action

The meaning 'a person or group involved in legal proceedings' is directly derivable from combining 'party' (a litigant) with the prepositional phrase 'to the action' (in relation to a lawsuit). This is a straightforward, compositional legal phrase following common prepositional patterns and similar constructions exist in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent meanings should understand it.

Etymology

Party to the action comes from old court language: party meant a person or group involved and action meant a lawsuit. Imagine people standing in a courtroom as part of the same case, so the phrase now means 'a person or group directly involved in legal proceedings'.