litigate

verb lit·i·gate \ ˈli-tə-ˌgāt \

Definition of litigate

litigated; litigating

intransitive verb

:to carry on a legal contest by judicial (see judicial 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

—

litigable

play \ˈli-ti-gə-bəl\ adjective

—

litigation

play \ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən\ noun

—

litigator

play \ˈli-tə-ˌgā-tər\ noun

See litigate defined for English-language learners

See litigate defined for kids

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 of litigate from the Web

The NFL would prefer to litigate against Elliott in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, as that court is obligated to follow the prior rulings of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

— michael mccann, SI.com, "Eight Important Questions Regarding Ezekiel Elliott's Suspension Appeal," 26 Aug. 2017
Still smarting from the poor reception of his response to the white nationalist violence in Charlottesville, Trump litigated his handling of the issue yet again.

— Time, "President Trump Goes on the Attack, Again," 22 Aug. 2017
The appeals court returned the case to U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan to decide whether Uber, by having litigated the case in his court, waived its right to arbitrate.

— reuters, Fortune, "Uber Scores a Victory in Appeals Court Over Passenger Rights," 17 Aug. 2017
Robins and his attorneys will now presumably head back to district court to litigate the now six-year-old case.

— joe mullin, Ars Technica, "Appeals court: Lawsuit over wrong info on Spokeo should move ahead," 16 Aug. 2017
Several other transgender-rights lawsuits have been litigated recently, with mixed results.

— david crary, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky man, transgender wife sue Amazon for workplace bias," 9 Aug. 2017
In Bluman v. FEC, a case Noti litigated and won, a three-judge district court reaffirmed the principle that prohibiting foreign nationals from spending money in the electoral process is perfectly consistent with our constitutional ideals.

— cristian farias, Daily Intelligencer, "No, Donald Trump Jr. Doesn’t Have a First Amendment Right to Get Freebies From the Russians," 16 July 2017
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.

— joe mullin, Ars Technica, "Two judges smack down notorious patent holder “Shipping and Transit” in one week," 13 July 2017
The team is a business and sporting institution that, through decades of legal battles over the use of their name and logos, has claimed and litigated for the freedom to continue using that racially disparaging term.

— kevin gover, Smithsonian, "The Washington Football Team Can Legally Keep Its Racist Name. But It Shouldn’t," 13 July 2017

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.

Origin and Etymology of litigate

Latin litigatus, past participle of litigare, from lit-, lis lawsuit + agere to drive — more at agent

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First Known Use: 1615

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LITIGATE Defined for English Language Learners

litigate

verb

Definition of litigate for English Language Learners

law : to make (something) the subject of a lawsuit : to cause (a case, an issue, etc.) to be decided and settled in a court of law

Law Dictionary

litigate

verb lit·i·gate \ ˈli-tə-ˌgāt \

legal Definition of litigate

litigated; litigating

intransitive verb

:to seek resolution of a legal contest by judicial process

chose to litigate rather than settle

transitive verb

:to make the subject of a suit

litigate a claim

; broadly :to contest or resolve in court

litigate an insanity defense

—

litigable

play \ˈli-tə-gə-bəl\ adjective

—

litigation

play \ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən\ noun

—

litigational

\-shə-nəl\ adjective

—

litigatory

\ˈli-tə-gə-ˌtōr-ē\ adjective

Origin and Etymology of litigate

Latin litigatus, past participle of litigare, from lit-, lis lawsuit + agere to drive

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LITIGATE Defined for English Language Learners

litigate

Definition of litigate for English Language Learners

Law Dictionary

litigate

legal Definition of litigate

litigable

litigation

litigational

litigatory

Origin and Etymology of litigate

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