Cause of action

A cause of action is a legally recognized set of facts and rules that entitles a person to seek a remedy from a court.

Legal right: An entitlement recognized by law that can be asserted or protected through legal processes. A cause of action rests on a legal right the alleged facts have violated.
Elements of a cause of action: The legal requirements a claimant must allege or prove to establish a particular claim. Each recognized cause of action is defined by elements that connect conduct to liability.
Breach of contract: A failure, without legal excuse, to perform a contractual obligation. It is a common cause of action grounded in an agreement and its breach.
Claim (law): An assertion that a party is entitled to legal relief, including a demand made in a lawsuit. A claim is the procedural assertion; its cause of action supplies the recognized legal basis.
Pleading: A formal written statement that sets out a party’s claims or defenses in a lawsuit. A pleading states the facts and legal grounds that make up a claim.
Motion to dismiss: A request that a court terminate a claim or case for a legal or procedural deficiency. A defendant may argue that pleaded facts do not establish a legally recognized claim.
Negligence: A failure to use reasonable care that causes legally recognized harm. It illustrates a tort claim built from duty, breach, causation, and damage.
Cause of action (common law): A historically specific common-law form of action that defined how a legal grievance could be brought. The modern phrase can be confused with the older system of named procedural forms.
Legal remedy: Relief a court can grant to address a legally recognized injury or violation. A cause of action must support a form of relief the court can award.
Summary judgment: A judgment entered without trial when no genuine dispute of material fact requires one. After evidence is developed, a claim may fail even if its pleading survived dismissal.

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