defendant

law

Also known as: accused

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Last updated

June 25, 2026

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In a legal context, a defendant is the person or party being accused of a crime or being sued in a lawsuit. This is in contrast to the plaintiff, who is the party initiating the legal action.123

The rights of the accused are fundamental to ensuring a fair trial. These rights, which have evolved over time, typically include the right to a speedy trial, the right to legal representation (especially for serious crimes), the ability to present evidence and witnesses, and the right to confront accusers. In many legal systems, such as the United States, these rights are extended to cover the period from arrest through final appeal. Procedural laws outline how legal cases proceed, including how defendants are summoned to respond to complaints and the consequences of failing to appear.45

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crime laboratory
Crime laboratory issues
Criminal defendants frequently have no access to those public forensic science services and must often rely on private laboratories to analyze evidence for them. Most jurisdictions have some provisions for providing indigent defendants with funds to obtain forensic science services, but often the amount of funds…
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Criminal defendants frequently have no access to those public forensic science services and must often rely on private laboratories to analyze evidence for them. Most jurisdictions have some provisions for providing indigent defendants with funds to obtain forensic science services, but often the amount of funds…
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Five Stories of the Wrongfully Accused
…of people who were wrongly accused, what led to the accusations, and what they did to overcome them. Covering roughly a century of American history, each case is as unique as the individuals involved, and yet taken together they explore assumptions about race, gender, and power, and even how attempts…
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…of people who were wrongly accused, what led to the accusations, and what they did to overcome them. Covering roughly a century of American history, each case is as unique as the individuals involved, and yet taken together they explore assumptions about race, gender, and power, and even how attempts…
Read More

plaintiff
…is brought—as opposed to the defendant, the party who is being sued. The term corresponds to petitioner in equity and civil law and to libelant in admiralty. It is generally applied also to the equity petitioner, particularly in those jurisdictions in which law and equity are merged. The party who…
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…is brought—as opposed to the defendant, the party who is being sued. The term corresponds to petitioner in equity and civil law and to libelant in admiralty. It is generally applied also to the equity petitioner, particularly in those jurisdictions in which law and equity are merged. The party who…
Read More

pleading
Thus, a defendant under English law may issue a notice—called a third-party notice—containing a statement of the nature of the claim made by him against a third party, relevant to the original subject matter of the action or of issues to be determined. A third party has…
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Thus, a defendant under English law may issue a notice—called a third-party notice—containing a statement of the nature of the claim made by him against a third party, relevant to the original subject matter of the action or of issues to be determined. A third party has…
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