Simple English definitions for legal terms
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Action, Form of: A way of doing things in court that is associated with a specific type of legal document called a writ. Each writ had its own rules for how to start a case, what to say in court, and how to end the case. There were 11 common forms of action, including trespass, debt, and contract. The choice of which form of action to use depended on the type of problem someone had and what they wanted to achieve in court. Forms of action helped people to understand their rights and responsibilities under the law.
Definition: Form of action refers to the legal and procedural device associated with a particular writ, each of which had specific forms of process, pleading, trial, and judgment. The common-law had 11 forms of action, including trespass, trover, ejectment, debt, covenant, account, and more.
Example: If someone trespassed on your property, you could use the form of action for trespass to sue them. This form of action had specific rules for how the case would proceed, including how the plaintiff would plead their case and how the defendant would respond.
Explanation: The example illustrates how a specific form of action would be used in a legal case. In this case, the form of action for trespass would be used if someone had trespassed on your property. The form of action would dictate how the case would proceed, including how the plaintiff would plead their case and how the defendant would respond.