What Is a Petition?

A petition is a legal document that 𝐆formally request🥃s a court order.

When a lawsuit is filed, it moves through a series of stages before it is finally resolved. In civil cases, the first stage is the filing of a petition by a plaintiff, which states the legal basis for the lawsuit. A petition sets out the petitioner's version of the facts. The defendant then receives a copy of it and a no🐷tice to appear in court.

In legal terms, petitions are similar to complaints. Both are considered pleadings, which are formal statements outlining one party's version of a matter.

How a Petition Works

When a petition is filed, the plaintiff and the defendant are given the opportunity to settle the case privately or to use an 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process rather than go to trial.

The court may also provide a summary judgment.

If the case 🌃goes to trial, the judge will ultimately issue a verdict. Either party to the suit may choose to appeal the court’s decision.

Petitions vs. Complaints

While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, petitions and complaints are not the same. A petition is filed by a petitioner, while a complaint is fil꧙ed by a plaintiff.

When a petition is filed, the party that the lawsuit is f𓄧iled against is called the respondent. When a complaint is filed, the party that it is filed against is called the defe🙈ndant.

A plaintiff files a complaint when they are see🅘king damages from a defendant, or when they want the courts to compel a defendant to start or stop a particular action. By compari🔯son, a petition asks the court to provide a court order.

Petitions in the Appeals Process

Petitions for court orders may include requests to dismiss a case, reduce a defendant's bail, or provide a continuance.

Another notable use of the petition is the request for an appeal. An appeal is a form of a court order in which one party in a lawsuit asks the courts to review a prꦺevious verdict.

The rules for appeal may vary between state and federal courts but they generally begin with the filing of a petition to appeal. A petition to appeal outlines the reasons why a verdict should be reviewed by an 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:appellate court. Commonly called a court of appea💯l, an appell☂ate court has the power to modify or overturn a lower court decision.

A petition to appeal can be filed by either the res🅰pondent or the petitioner. In some instances, both parties may file for an appeal.

An appeal requests that a cour♚t review the legal issues surrounding the case, rather than the facts of ♔the case that were presented to a jury.

In the U.S., an appeal of a lower court ruling can ultimately lead to a case being heard by the U.S. Supreme Court꧙.

Example of a Petition

In 2020, the United States Supreme Court heard the case of Seila Law LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The case originally began in 2017. The 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询🎶:Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) had issued a civil investigative demand to Seila Law, a California-based firm that specializes in debt-related legal services. The law firm challenged the consumer agency's power to conduct investigations on the grounds that its director was unconstitutionally insulated from presideꦆntial oversight.

The civil investigative demand—essentially a subpoena—sought inf💖ormation and documents related to the firm’s business practices. Seila Law asked the agency to set aside the demand on the ground that the agency’s leadership by a single director removable only for cause violated the constitutional principle of the separation of powers.

When the agency declined, Seila Law refused to comply with the demand. The agency filed a petition to enforce the demand in district court.

The district court granted the petition and ordered Seila Law to comply. Seila Law then appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which affirmed the district court's decision, citing Supreme Court precedents upholding limits on the president's power to remove independent agency directors.

The Supreme Court Ruling

Seila Law appealed again, and in March 2020, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case. They dealt with two questions:

1. Does the vesting of substantial executive authority in the CFPB—an independent agency led by a single director—violate the separation of powers principle?
2. If it does, is 12 U.S.C. § 5491(c)(3)—which states the President may remove the CFPB Director only for “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office—severable from the Dodd-Frank Act?

In June, the court issued its decision. Overturning the Ninth Circuit, it ruled the president is free to fire the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau without cause. The agency's leadership by a single director removable only for inefficiency, neglect, or malfeasance violates the separation of powers, but that provision is severable from the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Dodd-Frank Act, wrote Chief Justice John Roberts in his opinionꩵ for the Court.

The Bottom Line

In the United States, a civil court case begins with a petition or a complaint filed by a petitioner o🐻r a plaintiff. Both actions are pleadings, intended to initiate action by the court.

In some🅺 cases, that action is taken by the court. In others, the opposing sides in the case are a🌳ble to reach an agreement without further action by the court.

More often, the petition or complaint is the first in a series of hearings, which may be resolved only to be appealed to a higher court. In very rare cases, the issue goes all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.