Meaning & use
litigation pending
Last updated
Meaning
phrasefixed phraseformallegallaw
A legal case has been filed and is still waiting to be resolved in court.
Grammar: Used after a noun or as a standalone note: 'The matter is litigation pending.'
Patterns
- litigation pending against someone
- litigation pending in court
- with litigation pending
The company disclosed that there is litigation pending against it in three countries.
With litigation pending, the parties refused to comment publicly.
The report noted litigation pending over the disputed land.
Common combinations
- litigation pending against
- There is litigation pending against the former director.
- litigation pending in court
- The matter is litigation pending in court.
- with litigation pending
- With litigation pending, the merger was put on hold.
- litigation pending over
- They mentioned litigation pending over the trademark.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lawsuit pending
- Very close in meaning, but 'lawsuit' is a slightly more everyday word than 'litigation'.
- case pending
- Broader; it can refer to any kind of legal case, not only a civil lawsuit.
- under litigation
- Means the same but is used as a prepositional phrase, e.g. 'the property is under litigation'.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: litigation pending or litigation pending vs. pending litigation?
litigation pending vs litigation pending vs. pending litigation
'Pending litigation' is a noun phrase meaning lawsuits that are not yet finished; 'litigation pending' is more like a status label saying a case is still open.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Litigation pending against' is the standard pattern. Option B changes the phrase to 'pending litigation', which is also correct but is a different structure (adjective + noun). Option C misplaces the phrase, and option D omits the preposition 'against'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “litigation pending”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.