litigate

verb

lit·i·gate | \ˈli-tə-ˌgāt

litigated; litigating

Definition of litigate

: to carry on a legal contest by judicial (see judicial sense 1a) process only states can litigate before this court— R. H. Heindel

transitive verb

1 archaic : dispute

2 : to decide and settle in a court of law litigate a claim

Other Words from litigate More Example Sentences Learn More about litigate

Keep scrolling for more

Other Words from litigate

litigable \ ˈli-ti-gə-bəl

\ adjective

litigation \ ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən

\ noun

litigator \ ˈli-tə-ˌgā-tər

\ noun

Examples of litigate in a Sentence

They agree to litigate all disputes in this court. The company's unwillingness to make a deal increased her desire to litigate.

Recent Examples on the Web

In this Court's view, a plaintiff that genuinely seeks to invoke its protection rights under the Patent Act would eagerly litigate the validity issue, at least once, so a decision on the merits would emerge. — Cyrus Farivar, Ars Technica, "Notorious patent enforcement entity values its entire portfolio at $2, folds," 1 Nov. 2018 Companies would no longer be able to deduct from their tax liabilities their expenses and attorney fees spent litigating workplace harassment. — Erica Martinson, Anchorage Daily News, "Murkowski proposes a government role in the #MeToo movement," 8 June 2018 The damages were decided after Apple and Samsung spent the last week litigating the case. — Don Reisinger, Fortune, "Apple Car Has a Flat and Samsung Must Pay Up," 26 May 2018 Balwani was also charged in the case, and the SEC said his case would be litigated in federal court in the Northern District of California. — Samantha Masunaga, latimes.com, "Theranos' Elizabeth Holmes and 'Sunny' Balwani are indicted and accused of fraud schemes," 15 June 2018 Polster revealed the plan in a 20-page case management order filed Wednesday that set a series of deadlines and rules the attorneys must abide by as the cases from Ohio and other states are litigated. — Eric Heisig, cleveland.com, "Cleveland, Cuyahoga County's opioid lawsuits set as first cases against drug companies to go to trial, judge says," 11 Apr. 2018 Why is Broidy using a criminal defense specialist to litigate a contract dispute? — Paul Campos, Daily Intelligencer, "Broidy Ending Playmate’s Hush Payments Doesn’t Add Up – Unless He’s Covering for Trump," 2 July 2018 An administration official with knowledge of the plan indicated that the Trump administration was anticipating lawsuits and preparing to litigate Flores in court, particularly if lawmakers fail to approve a legislative fix. — John Wagner, Nick Miroff, Mike Debonis, Philly.com, "Trump reverses course, says he will put an end to family separations on border," 20 June 2018 Meanwhile, Democrats … believe their best chance to defeat Kavanaugh lies in highlighting the stakes for average Americans, not in re-litigating past political battles. — James Hohmann, Washington Post, "The Daily 202: Leaked recordings of Ga. governor candidate highlight why people mistrust politicians," 11 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'litigate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.