Legal Definitions - infitiari

infitiari

In Roman law, infitiari refers to the act of formally denying an allegation or claim made by a plaintiff in a legal proceeding. It specifically applies to situations where a defendant denies liability, especially concerning a debt or other obligation.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Denying a Claim of Property Damage: Imagine a situation where a homeowner (the plaintiff) files a lawsuit against a construction company (the defendant), alleging that the company's recent work on a neighboring property caused structural damage to their house. If the construction company responds to the court by asserting that their work was not the cause of the damage, or that the damage existed beforehand, this formal denial of the homeowner's specific allegation would be an act of infitiari.

  This illustrates infitiari because the construction company is directly refuting the plaintiff's claim of responsibility for the alleged damage.

• Disputing a Debt: Consider a scenario where a creditor claims that an individual owes a significant sum of money for services rendered. If the individual responds by stating that they never agreed to those services, or that they have already paid the amount in full, their formal denial of liability for the alleged debt constitutes infitiari.

  This demonstrates infitiari as the individual is denying the core allegation of owing a debt to the creditor.

• Refuting a Breach of Contract: Suppose a business owner sues a supplier, claiming the supplier failed to deliver goods according to the terms of a signed contract. If the supplier presents evidence and formally states that they did, in fact, fulfill all contractual obligations, or that the contract terms were misinterpreted by the business owner, this act of denying the alleged breach is an example of infitiari.

  This shows infitiari because the supplier is directly challenging and denying the plaintiff's accusation of failing to uphold their contractual duties.