Get Declaratory Judgment

To establish federal jurisdiction in a declaratory judgment action, two conditions must be satisfied. First, is the constitutional inquiry - the case must be a 'case or controversy' pursuant to Article III of the US Constitution. Second is the prudential inquiry – declaratory relief must be appropriate.

Declaratory relief, also commonly known as declaratory judgment or declaration, is a form of discretionary remedy which parties may seek from the court. A declaration is essentially a statement made by the court at the request of a party.

For example, a policyholder believes that their denied claim is unjust. As a result, they inform the insurer that they are considering a lawsuit to recover losses. The insurer seeks a declaratory judgment to clarify its rights and obligations with hopes of preventing the lawsuit.

"A complaint for declaratory relief is legally sufficient if it sets forth facts showing the existence of an actual controversy relating to the legal rights and duties of the respective parties under a written instrument and requests that these rights and duties be adjudged by the court." (Maguire v. Hibernia S.

An example of this in a case involving contracts would be a party seeking an interpretation of the contract to determine their rights. Another example would be an insured individual seeking a specific determination of their rights and surrounding circumstances regarding insurance coverage under a specific policy.

A declaratory judgment is typically requested when a party is threatened with a lawsuit but the lawsuit has not yet been filed; or when a party or parties believe that their rights under law and/or contract might conflict; or as part of a counterclaim to prevent further lawsuits from the same plaintiff (for example, ...

A Declaratory Judgment Example For instance, an insurer in a coverage can seek a declaratory judgment, if peradventure a policyholder wants to file a lawsuit against the insurer to recover losses.