Equity

Definition of Equity

Note: See a more comprehensive approach to the Equity legal concept in the American Law Encyclopedia

Decisions based on a judge's sense of fairness rather than strict common law standards. The equity model permits judges to issue remedies in civil cases based on equitable principles that are outside or that supplement common law. Some of the flexibility of equity jurisdiction, however, has been lessened by the tendency of judges to follow precedents established in earlier equity cases. Cases in equity differ from other civil actions at law or common law because of the nature of the relief or remedy sought. In equity actions, damages are not readily remedied by monetary damage awards (although equitable relief may be supplemented by awards of monetary damages). Equitable relief may, for example, be appropriate in situations like environmental contamination or school discrimination where money may be insufficient, in itself, to arrest or repair the injury. In such cases, the plaintiff carries a heavier burden than in other civil cases because it must be shown that injury is permanent and therefore irreparable by mere payment of damages.

See Also

Common Law (Judicial Function) Equity Jurisdiction (Judicial Function) Injunction (Judicial Function) Irreparable Injury (Judicial Function).

Resources

Equity Related Resources

• Equity in the United States Legal Encyclopedia
• Judicial Function Keywords in the United States Legal Encyclopedia
• Judicial Function Keywords in the International Legal Dictionary

Notes

• “Equity”, The American Law Dictionary, 1991, California

Equity (Judicial Function)

Meaning of Equity

This is a brief definition of equity; a term used, in general, in the field of procedural law within the United States: A body of law, or field of jurisdiction, differing in its origin, theory, and methods from the common law_ often used in a general sense to refer to the body of law pertaining to injunctions and restraining orders.