defendant
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defendant
A person or organization against whom a lawsuit is filed in a civil case. The counterpart is the plaintiff.
Der Beklagte wurde zur Zahlung von Schadensersatz verurteilt.
The defendant was ordered to pay damages.
'Der Beklagte' (the defendant) is a nominalized past participle of the verb 'beklagen' (in the legal sense: to sue someone). So it literally describes the person who is 'beklagt' or sued.
Die Person, die eine Klage einreicht, ist der Kläger, die andere der Beklagte.
The person who files a lawsuit is the plaintiff; the other is the defendant.
Since this noun developed from a participle, it is declined like an adjective. Pay attention to the endings after the article: 'der Beklagte' (the defendant), 'dem Beklagten' (to the defendant), 'den Beklagten' (the defendant as accusative object).
Das Gericht gab dem Beklagten recht.
The court ruled in favor of the defendant.
This word belongs to legal terminology. It is used almost exclusively in the context of court proceedings and legal texts.
Der Anwalt riet dem Beklagten, die Aussage zu verweigern.
The lawyer advised the defendant to refuse to testify.
plaintiff
'der Kläger' and 'der Beklagte' are opposing parties in a civil case. 'der Kläger' is the person or party who files the lawsuit. 'der Beklagte' is the person or organization against whom that lawsuit is directed. So they belong to the same court situation, but they are on different sides. Learners can easily confuse the words because both refer to people in the legal process. Remember: 'der Kläger' starts the lawsuit; 'der Beklagte' has to respond to it.
Der Beklagte bestreitet, dass er den Vertrag gebrochen hat.
The defendant denies that he broke the contract.
Der Kläger erklärt dem Gericht, warum er das Geld zurückhaben möchte.
The plaintiff explains to the court why he wants the money back.