litigation

noun

lit·i·ga·tion | \ ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən

plural litigations

Definition of litigation

: the act, process, or practice of settling a dispute in a court of law : the act or process of litigating an issue that has been in litigation for years an attorney who specializes in the litigation of property disputes The American Judicial System generally limits the filing of lawsuits to individuals with a personal stake in the litigation, but there are instances when litigants cannot themselves prosecute an action.— Jonathan Mahler also : a legal action or proceeding (such as a lawsuit) "You can't realize how much it costs to run one of these litigations. To get a battery of lawyers into a courtroom and do all the planning … and so on costs $500,000." — Gordon Gould