Who is the plaintiff and who is the defendant

English used in the context of law is so confusing and full of jargon that it has its own unofficial name: legalese.

If you are confused by legalese, you join a well-populated group of talented writers. Even many legal professionals advocate for simplifying legal English.

In this article, we will specifically discuss two words that are used almost exclusively in the context of law: plaintiff and defendant.

What is the Difference Between Defendant and Plaintiff?

In this post, I will compare defendant vs. plaintiff. I will use each of these terms in an example sentence, so you can see them in context.

Plus, I will show you a memory tool that you can use to remind yourself whether defendant or plaintiff is the term for which you are looking.

When to Use Defendant

O.J. Simpson, Lizzie Borden, and Casey Anthony are famous defendants who were acquitted of murder charges at their trials.

Here are a few more examples of defendant in a sentence,

• The judge set bail so high that the defendant could not possibly hope to pay it.
• “The defendant pleads not guilty,” said Alistair’s attorney.
• The Supreme Court on Wednesday threw out a Colorado law that forced defendants whose convictions were reversed to then prove their innocence before recovering fines they had paid as part of their punishment. –The Wall Street Journal

The word defendant was first recorded in English in the 14th century. It is related to the word defend—defendants must defend (or be defended) against accusations of wrongdoing. Defend has been used since Middle English borrowed it from Latin via French.

Defendant can also be an adjective, where it means interested in protecting oneself, but this usage is not limited to legal contexts.

When to Use Plaintiff

For example,

• “Objection, your honor!” said Max’s attorney, “this trial has nothing to do with the plaintiff’s romantic entanglements.”
• According to John, representing plaintiffs is much more challenging than representing defendants.
• Manning addressed the accusations after a plaintiff in a 2014 lawsuit recently filed a motion to compel testimony that included an email from Manning to a team equipment manager asking for two helmets that could pass as game-used items. –The New York Times

Oliver Brown, Norma McCorvey, and residents of Hinkley, California, are famous plaintiffs who were successful in court.

The word plaintiff is related to the adjective plaintive and the verb complain, which can all be traced back to a Latin verb that means to beat one’s chest in lamentation.

Trick to Remember the Difference

• Plaintiff is related to the words plaintive and complain. You can think of a plaintiff as the person who makes a complaint in court.
• Defendant is related to the word defend. A defendant is the person who must defend themselves against the complaints brought forward by the plaintiff.

As long as you can remember the origin of these legal words, you should always be able to remember what they mean.

Summary

Is it defendant or plaintiff? Plaintiff and defendant are legal words. They refer to the accusing and the accused parties, respectively, in court cases.

To summarize,

• A defendant has charges brought up against him or her.
• A plaintiff brings charges against someone else.

If you have any future trouble remember the meaning of plaintiff or defendant, you can check back with this article for reference.

Commonly Used:

• U.S. (United States Reports)

• S.Ct. (Supreme Court Reporter)

• L. Ed. (Supreme Court Reports Lawyers' Edition)

• F., F.2d, F.3d (Federal Reporter)

• F. Cas. (Federal Cases)

• F.R.D. (Federal Rules Decisions)

• F. Supp., F. Supp. 2d (Federal Supplement)

• A.L.R. (American Law Reports)

• Am. Jur. (American Jurisprudence)

• C.J.S. (Corpus Juris Secundum)

Reference Resources:

Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations

Prince's Bieber Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations: A Reference Guide for Attorneys, Legal Secretaries, Paralegals, and Law Students

Location: READY REFERENCE (1ST FL)  and  RESERVE (1ST FL) KF246 .B46 2017 

George Simons | July 21, 2022

In a civil case, a plaintiff is the party that brings legal action or in whose name such action is brought. The defendant is the party targeted by the legal action filed by the plaintiff. This article discusses the key differences between plaintiffs and defendants in debt collection lawsuits. More specifically, in a debt lawsuit:

• Plaintiff = the person or company that is suing someone else for debt
• Defendant = the person or company that is being sued for a debt (whether they owe it or not)

Understanding the plaintiff in debt collection lawsuits

The plaintiff is usually the person or entity filing the case in debt collection lawsuits. So, the plaintiff could be a creditor or debt collection agency.

For example, Jane signs up for a credit card with American Express and is accepted. She starts using the card for most of her purchases, but when she loses her job during the COVID-19 pandemic, she falls behind on her credit card payments. After a few months of missed payments, American Express charges off Jane's account and sells the debt to a debt collection agency called Midland Funding LLC. At this point, Midland keeps contacting Jane about the debt, but she is unable to pay due to financial hardship during the pandemic. Eventually, Midland Funding LLC files a lawsuit against Jane to try to get her to pay off the debt.

In this example, Midland Funding LLC is the plaintiff in the case, and Jane is the defendant.The term plaintiff is related to the word complain. Midland Funding LLC, otherwise referred to as the plaintiff, is filing a complaint against Jane in this context.

Is plaintiff the same as complainant?

In most criminal cases, the plaintiff is usually referred to as the complainant. The word plaintiff is mostly used in civil cases such as personal injury, debt collection, among others. So, if you're involved in a debt lawsuit case, you probably won't hear the word complainant to describe the person or company suing you.

Understanding the defendant in debt collection lawsuits

In civil cases, the defendant is the party or entity being sued by the plaintiff.

Using the example above, Jane would be the defendant in the case. A helpful hint to remember this term is that the defendant is the one who must defend themself against the allegations or claims that the plaintiff is making..

The word 'defendant' derives from the term 'defense' and the action of defending yourself against a claim (complaint filed by the plaintiff). So, if you're being sued for debt like Jane, the law allows you to defend yourself against the plaintiff's allegations.

The Burden of Proof for the plaintiff and defendant in debt collection lawsuits

The term burden of proof describes the responsibility one party has to prove the truth of their claim against the other. For example, when Midland Funding LLC files a debt collection lawsuit against Jane, they must prove that she owes the debt.

However, the burden of proof varies depending on the nature of the case. For example, in civil cases such as those involving debt collection, the plaintiff doesn't have to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant owes them the debt in question. Instead, they only have to convince the judge or jury that there is more than a 50% chance that the claim filed against the defendant is true. In most cases, the heavier the evidence against the defendant, the better it is for the plaintiff.

On the other hand, criminal cases require the plaintiff to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty of the allegations being adjudicated.

Examples of burden of proof in debt collection laws

To further understand the difference between a plaintiff and a defendant in debt collection laws, let's discuss how the burden of proof switches from one party to the other throughout the case. Again, we'll use the Midland Funding LLC vs Jane example for reference.

When Midland Funding LLC files the debt collection lawsuit, Jane receives a court Summons and Complaint. The Summons informs Jane (the defendant) of the lawsuit, and the Complaint lists each specific claim against her. When Janes receives this document, she can answer each claim with one of the following response:

• Admit (like saying This is true.)
• Deny (like saying Prove it.)
• Deny due to lack of knowledge (like saying I don't know.)

Most attorneys recommend denying everything listed in the Complaint. By doing so, the burden of proof shifts back to the plaintiff. So, if Jane denies everything in her Answer to the Complaint, It'll be Midland Funding's responsibility to prove that she owes the debt in question.

Midland can't seek further legal action against Jane during that time unless they prove that she owes the debt. It's pretty common for debt collection agencies to give up at this point, because they often lack the proper documentation to prove that the debt was actually transferred to them. Jane may be surprised to find that Midland Funding is claiming an incorrect amount too. This is because while Midland Funding purchased the debt, they may not have enough resources or even time to prove the debt is valid..

Since the burden of proof is on the plaintiff, Jane should not elaborately explain her side of the story in her response to the Complaint. Rather, she should simply respond to each paragraph listed in the Complaint, and wait to hear back from Midland Funding (like we said, many debt collection agencies would rather dismiss the case at this point than continue paying court costs and attorney fees).

If, however, Midland proves that Jane owes the debt but she still disputes it, the burden or proof now shifts back to her. For example, if Jane's affirmative defenses state that the debt has already been paid, she'll need to provide proof of this.

Ultimately, a judge might have the final word regarding the debt collection lawsuit. In some cases, the judge may recommend mediation or arbitration if deemed necessary to have the issue solved out of court.

Verify your debt before paying

By the time a lawsuit is filed against you, the debt might have switched hands several times, increasing the chances of discrepancies. For example, if the original amount owed is $10,000, a debt collection agency might mistakenly or intentionally add an extra zero to the amount, meaning you supposedly owe $100,000.

Such cases happen all the time, and unfortunately, consumers end up paying for debt they don't even owe in the first place. This explains why it's necessary to request further verification of the debt before making any payments on it. Besides, requesting a debt validation also buys you more time to plan the best strategy to approach the lawsuit. You can do this by sending a Debt Validation Letter.

You can learn more about Debt Validation Letters (i.e. how to draft one, what debt validation means, etc.) in this video:

Whether or not you owe a debt, it's always advisable to respond to a debt collection Summons. Ignoring the Summons doesn't mean that everything has been settled or will magically disappear. Instead, ignoring allows the plaintiff to convince the court to pass a default judgment against you. A default judgment gives the plaintiff legal authority to seek other lawful ways to recover the debt. In most cases, the plaintiff will seek a wage garnishment order which requires your employer to deduct a portion of your wages and forward it to the plaintiff to settle the debt.

SoloSuit makes it easy to respond. You can draft an Answer in less than 15 minutes, have it reviewed by an attorney, and get it filed in the court, all in one stop!

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit helps people get debt collectors and creditors off their back.

How it works: SoloSuit is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your written Answer. It generates an automatic Answer for you, based on your Upon completion, you can either print the completed forms and mail in the hard copies to the courts or you can pay SoloSuit to file it for you and to have an attorney review the document.

>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate

>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit: A Student Solution To Give Utah Debtors A Fighting Chance

How to answer a summons for debt collection in your state

Here's a list of guides for other states.

All 50 states.