Barratry (common law)

For other uses, including other legal terms, see Barratry.

Barratry (/ˈbærətri/ BARR-ə-tree, from Old French barat ("deceit, trickery")) is a legal term that, at common law, described a criminal offense committed by people who are overly officious in instigating or encouraging prosecution of groundless litigation,[1] or who bring repeated or persistent acts of litigation for the purposes of profit or harassment.[2]

Although it remains a crime in some jurisdictions, barratry has frequently been abolished as being anachronistic and obsolete.

If barratrous litigation is deemed to be for the purpose of silencing critics, it is known as a strategic lawsuit against public participation (SLAPP). Jurisdictions that otherwise have no barratry laws may have SLAPP laws.

  1. ^ Rhine, Wayne (1964). "Barratry - A Comparative Analysis of Recent Barratry Statutes". DePaul Law Review. 14 (1): 146.
  2. ^ Syed, Ahmed (2017). "Access to Justice: Litigation Financing and the New Developments". International Academic Journal of Accounting and Financial Management. 4 (1): 89–99.