litigation
noun
lit·i·ga·tion
ˌli-tə-ˈgā-shən 
plural litigations
: 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
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
Gordon Gould Examples of litigation in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But internal documents produced in the discovery phase of the social media litigation raise questions about Meta’s focus on teen users and the effectiveness of its safety features.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
The injunction itself does not resolve the underlying lawsuit, and is in effect for the duration of the litigation.
—Abraham Gutman, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2026
The building is the subject of litigation brought by former employees and executives of the nonprofit think tank after the Republican administration seized the facility last year and fired almost all the institute’s staff.
—Aamer Madhani, Chicago Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Aaron Reitz — former DOJ official, tied publicly to Paxton’s political orbit and campaigning on enforcement and litigation themes.
—Dante Motley, Austin American Statesman, 16 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for litigation
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Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 17 Feb. 2026
The injunction itself does not resolve the underlying lawsuit, and is in effect for the duration of the litigation.
—Abraham Gutman, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2026
The building is the subject of litigation brought by former employees and executives of the nonprofit think tank after the Republican administration seized the facility last year and fired almost all the institute’s staff.
—Aamer Madhani, Chicago Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Aaron Reitz — former DOJ official, tied publicly to Paxton’s political orbit and campaigning on enforcement and litigation themes.
—Dante Motley, Austin American Statesman, 16 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for litigation
Cite this Entry
“Litigation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/litigation. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
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