What is the difference between plaintiff and appellant

When a case is appealed, the parties involved are seldom referred to as the plaintiff and defendant. The party appealing the ruling is called the appellant. The party responding to the appeal is called the appellee. It does not matter which side they were on in the original case. If a plaintiff sues the defendant, the defendant can turn around and file a claim against the plaintiff. The plaintiff can be referred to as the counter-defendant. When you are entering a lawsuit, your attorney should explain any unfamiliar terms.

Knowing the difference between plaintiff and defendant is a good way to start to build your legal vocabulary. When you need legal advice, help with child support enforcement, or child custody contact a Family Law attorney from the legal professionals at the Jimenez Law Firm. Contact us here. Plaintiff vs. Defendant — What is the Difference? Learn how to use these legal terms correctly in a personal injury case It is important to understand the terms mentioned when you are discussing your case.

Remembering the difference A simple way to remember the difference between the two terms is that defendant has the word defend in it. The burden of proof While making distinctions between the two terms plaintiff and defendant, it is important to know that in a civil case, the plaintiff generally has the burden of proof.

As we now have an idea of what the above terms mean we will further study them in detail. Plaintiff is the person who sues the defendant for the damages suffered by him.

He is the person or entity who files the lawsuit. After the complaint is filed by the plaintiff it is the responsibility of defendant to file an answer for the said complaint. The word defendant contains the word defend which basically means to forbid so defendant has to defend himself in the court of law for the allegations made against him by the plaintiff.

We can say that defendant is that person or entity who is being sued by the plaintiff and the burden of proof lies on the plaintiff as he is the one to file the complaint.

But the Defendant also has a right to file a counter complaint against the plaintiff and then the plaintiff becomes the counter defendant and defendant becomes counter plaintiff and in this case the burden of proof lies on the defendant. Shrey is stopped at a red light. Shrey is seriously injured and he files a lawsuit against Anjali to recover additional damages.

In this case Shrey is the plaintiff and Anjali is the defendant. Here the burden of proof will be on Shrey to prove that Anjali was distracted while driving which resulted in the accident. The Plaintiff is generally named first in the case caption and defendant second. In the trial court, the first name listed is the plaintiff, the party bringing the suit. The name following the "v" is the defendant. If the case is appealed, as in this example, the name of the petitioner appellant is usually listed first, and the name of the respondent appellee is listed second.

If the defendant in the trial court case brings an appeal, the defendant's name may be listed first in the appellate case. If you see an incomplete citation such as U. United States Reports S. Supreme Court Reporter L. Federal Cases F.