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Meaning & use

pending litigation

noun·Advancedlegal

Last updated

UK/ˌpendɪŋ ˌlɪtɪˈɡeɪʃn/
US/ˌpendɪŋ ˌlɪtəˈɡeɪʃn/

Meaning

  1. noununcountablelegal

    A lawsuit or court case that has begun but has not yet been decided or settled.

    Grammar: Used without a: the company faces pending litigation.

    Patterns

    • pending litigation against someone
    • pending litigation over something

    The sale was delayed because of pending litigation over the property.

    The firm disclosed pending litigation in its annual report.

    Banks may refuse a loan while pending litigation hangs over the business.

Common combinations

disclose pending litigation
The seller must disclose any pending litigation.
face pending litigation
The company faces pending litigation from former employees.
subject to pending litigation
The merger is subject to pending litigation.
pending litigation against
There is pending litigation against the builder.
outcome of pending litigation
The outcome of pending litigation will affect the price.

Synonyms and how they differ

ongoing lawsuit
Ongoing lawsuit is a plain-English phrase and does not stress that a decision is still waiting.
unresolved case
Unresolved case is general and may not be in court yet, while pending litigation is a formal legal phrase.
open proceedings
Open proceedings is broader and may include non-court processes, so it is less precise than litigation.

Opposites

settled caseconcluded litigation

Word family

litigate verb
to take a dispute to court
litigant noun
a person involved in a lawsuit
litigation noun
the process of taking legal action
litigious adjective
too ready to take people to court

Commonly confused: pending litigation or prosecution? pending litigation or pending?

pending litigation vs prosecution

Prosecution is a criminal case brought by the state, whereas litigation is generally a civil dispute between parties.

pending litigation vs pending

Pending alone means waiting to be decided, so it can describe many things beyond court cases.

Practice

The buyers withdrew because there was ___ over who owned the land.

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