Plaintiff - Genkoku

In civil and administrative litigation, a person who files a lawsuit in his or her own name in court and seeks a judgment. The person who is the other party in the lawsuit filed by the plaintiff is called the defendant, and the two are collectively called the parties to the lawsuit or simply the parties. In the past, parties were considered to be the subjects of the rights and obligations that are the subject of the lawsuit, but because it is difficult to explain how someone other than the subjects of the rights and obligations can become a party, the person who files a lawsuit is now simply called the plaintiff, and the person who is sued is simply called the defendant. In principle, who is the plaintiff and who is the defendant is determined based on the description in the complaint.

[Keiichi Takagi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

民事訴訟および行政訴訟において、裁判所に自己の名において訴えを提起し判決を求める者をいう。原告によって訴訟の相手方とされた者を被告といい、両者をあわせて訴訟当事者または単に当事者という。古くは、当事者は訴訟の対象である権利義務の主体であるとされていたが、権利義務の主体以外の者が当事者となることの説明が困難である等のために、現在では単に訴えた者が原告、訴えられた者が被告とされている。だれが原告、被告であるかは、原則として訴状の記載に基づいて確定される。

［髙木敬一］

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