Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A judgment against a plaintiff for failure to prosecute the case or to introduce sufficient evidence.
- v. To render a judgment of nonsuit against (a plaintiff).
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A judgment or decision against a plaintiff when he fails to show a cause of action at the trial: now often called dismissal of complaint. See calling of the plaintiff, under calling. The chief characteristic of this judgment is that it does not usually bar a new action on the same matter.
- n. A judgment ordered for neglect to prosecute; a non pros.
- In law, to subject to a nonsuit; deprive of the benefit of a legal process, owing to failure to appear in court when called upon, or to prove a case.
- Nonsuited.
Wiktionary
- n. law A lawsuit that is dismissed as having been brought without cause, prior to an adjudication on the merits.
- v. law, transitive To dismiss (a plaintiff) on the grounds of his or her lawsuit having been brought without cause, prior to an adjudication on the merits.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Law) A neglect or failure by the plaintiff to follow up his suit; a stopping of the suit; a renunciation or withdrawal of the cause by the plaintiff, either because he is satisfied that he can not support it, or upon the judge's expressing his opinion. A compulsory nonsuit is a nonsuit ordered by the court on the ground that the plaintiff on his own showing has not made out his case.
- v. (Law) To determine, adjudge, or record (a plaintiff) as having dropped his suit, upon his withdrawal or failure to follow it up.
- adj. Nonsuited.
Etymologies
- Middle English, failure of a plaintiff to prosecute, from Anglo-Norman nounsuite : noun-, no (from Latin nōn; see non-) + suite, suit; see suit. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Toler's reason for it was that he was too _constitutional_ to interfere with a jury, Be that as it may, a nonsuit was a nonentity, 'I hope, my Lord,' said counsel in a case actually commanding one, 'your Lordship will, for once, have the courage to nonsuit?”
“The Sincan High Criminal Court has revoked the "nonsuit" decision of the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on the matter.”
“The Sincan High Criminal Court has revoked the "nonsuit" decision of the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on the criminal complaint about the phones of Ömer Faruk Eminağaoğlu being tapped.”
“Eminağaoğlu's criminal complaint on the matter was denied by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office by the "nonsuit" decision as there was "no need for an investigation against civil servants," according to the office.”
“The decision to nonsuit ends court jurisdiction over the children, but it does not necessarily end CPS oversight.”
“The reasons to nonsuit have ranged from no evidence of abuse to their parents taking adequate steps to protect them.”
“Presently she added, O my lord Nur al-Din, an thou desire to nonsuit separation, be on thy guard against a swart-visaged oldster, blind of the right eye and lame of the left leg; for he it is who will be the cause of our severance.”
“Nor is any licenced person to credit more than twenty shillings, under forfeiture of debt; nor to sue soldiers, seamen, servants, or prisoners, under the penalty of nonsuit and treble charges.”
“He had just decided, in a previous case, that a corporation was not liable for the wrongful acts of its agent or servant, and when Mr. Arthur handed him the pleadings, he said that the railroad company was not liable, and was about to order a nonsuit.”
“In cases of nonsuit, and also when no cause of action is found, judgment is rendered against the plantiff for the costs.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘nonsuit’.
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Logolepsy
"Luciferous Logolepsy is a collection of over 9,000 obscure English words. Though the definition of an 'English' word might seem to be straightforward, it is not. There exist so many adopted, deriv...
Anschauung, Areopagus, Argus, Briarean, Dei gratia, Dei judicium, Deo volente, Duecento, Foehn, Geflugelte Worte, Gegenschein, Hakenkreuz and 9230 more...
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Gil Blas
Interesting words and usages from Smollett's 1749 translation of Lesage's L'Histoire de Gil Blas de Santillane
reck, durance, rhodomontade, hangdog, trap, lustre, pin, boggle, dandle, birthday suit, colic, gripes and 238 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for nonsuit.
yarb But, said I, how do you know that your fifteen hundred ducats were faithfully paid into his hands? Unquestionably they were! exclaimed Don Raphael; I would answer for the disinterested purity of that ecclesiastic as soon as for my own. I would be your collateral security, said Lamela; he is a priest of the strictest sanctity, a sort of universal almoner; and though many times cited for sums of money, deposited with him for charitable uses, he has always nonsuited the plaintiff and gone out of court with an augmentation of alms-giving notoriety.
- Lesage, The Adventures of Gil Blas of Santillane, tr. Smollett, bk 10 ch. 6 Oct 9, 2008