Piecemeal Litigation Definition:

Circumstances in which more than one court is seized of the adjudication of the same issue.

Related Terms: Res Judicata

"Piecemeal litigation occurs when different courts adjudicate the identical issue, thereby duplicating judicial effort and potentially rendering conflicting results."

 

Justice David Lawson, United States District Court (Michigan), 2007 in Weber v Fossen.

Avoiding piecemeal litigation is sometimes cited as grounds for dismissal of a cause of action which appears to be active in more than one court.

REFERENCES:

Categories & Topics:

Find you are constantly looking up definitions? Try our search provider (works in most modern browsers)

If you find an error or omission in Duhaime's Legal Dictionary, or if you have legal term suggestion, we'd love to hear from you!