Meaning & use
locus standi
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Meaning
noununcountablelegal
The right of a person or group to bring a case to court because they are directly affected by the matter.
Grammar: Uncountable; usually follows have, lack or establish: the charity had locus standi.
Patterns
- have locus standi to do something
- lack locus standi
- locus standi in something
The court ruled that the neighbors had no locus standi to challenge the permit.
A charity must show locus standi before it can bring such a claim.
The judge dismissed the case because the claimant lacked locus standi.
Common combinations
- have locus standi
- Only people directly harmed will have locus standi in this case.
- lack locus standi
- The group lacked locus standi to sue the ministry.
- establish locus standi
- She had to establish locus standi before the hearing could continue.
- challenge locus standi
- The defense chose to challenge locus standi at the start of the trial.
Synonyms and how they differ
- standing
- Standing is the usual term in American courts and means the same thing, while locus standi sounds more traditionally British or Commonwealth.
- right of action
- Right of action is broader and can describe the basis of a claim, while locus standi concerns who may bring it.
- legal capacity
- Legal capacity refers to a person's general ability to act in law, not their link to one particular dispute.
Word family
Commonly confused: locus standi or locus classicus?
locus standi vs locus classicus
Locus classicus is a Latin phrase for the best-known passage on a subject; it has nothing to do with the right to sue.
Practice
The court refused to hear the case because the claimant had no ____.
Choose one answer.
Locus standi is the right to bring a case. Locus classicus sounds similar but means a standard source passage.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “locus standi”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.