Under Article III of the U.S. Constitution, a federal court may only issue a declaratory judgment when there is an actual controversy. Without an actual controversy, the federal courts do not have jurisdiction to hear the case.
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 is a court-issued judgment that defines and outlines the rights and obligations of each party in a contract. Declaratory judgments have the same effect and force as final judgments and are legally binding. These judgments are also called a declaration or declaratory relief.
A declaratory judgment is a ruling of the court to clarify something (usually a contract provision) that is in dispute. A summary judgment is a ruling that a case or portion of a case must be dismissed because there are no triable issues of material fact in dispute.
They are generally requested when a lawsuit is threatened but before the lawsuit is actually filed, when a conflict might exist between a party's or parties' rights under law or under contract and as a way to prevent multiple lawsuits from the same plaintiff.
FEDERAL JURISDICTION AND PROCEDURE - DECLARATORY JUDGMENT - A FEDERAL COURT MAY ISSUE A DECLARATORY JUDGEMENT UPON A SHOWING OF THREATENED ENFORCEMENT OF A STATE CRIMINAL STATUTE CHALLENGED AS UNCONST, ETC.
To bring a claim for declaratory judgment in a situation where a patent dispute may exist or develop, the claimant must establish that an actual controversy exists. If there is a substantial controversy of sufficient immediacy and reality, the court will generally proceed with the declaratory-judgment action.
Under the Declaratory Judgment Act, a court must have a basis for federal subject matter jurisdiction independent of the Declaratory Judgment Act. See Skelly Oil Co. v. Phillips Petroleum Co., 339 U.S. 667, 671-72 (1950); Guaranty Nat'l Ins.