litigious

UK/lɪˈtɪd͡ʒəs/US/lɪˈtɪd͡ʒəs/

adjectiveC2Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,332 of 15,258neutral

Litigious means too quick to take disputes to court. A litigious neighbour, a litigious culture, notoriously litigious.

It is always a criticism and often a warning, since a litigious person is one nobody wants to deal with. It also describes a society, and calling a country litigious is a standing complaint about America in particular.

Definitions of litigious

1adjectivelitigiousToo quick to take disputes to court.C2
“Doctors worry about working in such a litigious society, where patients sue over every mistake.”

litigious is a quality.

Where it comes from

Latin litigiosus comes from litigium, a dispute, from lis, a lawsuit.

Latin
lītigiōsus
Middle English
litigious
English, today
litigious

From Middle English litigious, from Latin lītigiōsus. Compare Middle French litigieux.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

litigious in the wild

Despite the newly litigious environment of journalism, Slap insists on filling his column with rumor and innuendo, which draws lawsuits and frequently results in Slap's termination.
The Slap Maxwell Story
As of that year the president of Wexford, Mark Hale, said that he tries to keep a low profile because the inmates the company serves are very litigious.
Wexford Health Sources
In litigious cases, or when an opinion is required, the attorney will "brief" an Advocate; see below.
Attorneys in South Africa
MacKeeper had a troubled and litigious history under previous ownership.
MacKeeper

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

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