''Ad quod damnum'' or ''ad damnum'' is a

Latin phrase __NOTOC__ This is a list of Wikipedia articles of Latin phrases and their translation into English. ''To view all phrases on a single, lengthy document, see: List of Latin phrases (full)'' The list also is divided alphabetically into twenty pag ...

meaning "according to the harm" or "appropriate to the harm". It is used in

tort law A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishab ...

as a measure of damage inflicted, and implying a remedy, if one exists, ought to correspond specifically and only to the damage suffered. It is also used in pleading, as the statement of the plaintiff's money loss or damages claimed.See Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a)(3). An ''ad damnum'' clause is also sometimes called a "prayer for relief." Several U.S. states prohibit plaintiffs from demanding a specific amount of money in the section of a

complaint In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of action) that the filing party or parties (the plaintiff(s)) believes are sufficient to support a claim against the party ...

initiating a

civil action - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil act ...

for

personal injury Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. In common law jurisdictions the term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit in which the person bringing the suit (t ...

wrongful death Wrongful death claim is a claim against a person who can be held liable for a death. The claim is brought in a civil action, usually by close relatives, as enumerated by statute. In wrongful death cases, survivors are compensated for the harm, ...

. This is to prevent unethical attorneys from gaining undue publicity for their cases (and trampling upon the

due process Due process of law is application by state of all legal rules and principles pertaining to the case so all legal rights that are owed to the person are respected. Due process balances the power of law of the land and protects the individual per ...

rights of defendants) by demanding outrageous amounts that they cannot possibly prove at trial. This is why such complaints simply demand amounts "in excess of $ (where X is the minimum amount in controversy necessary to get into the trial court of general jurisdiction), "pecuniary loss", or "monetary damages in an amount according to proof." Of course, at some point the defendant needs to get some idea of what amount of money the plaintiff actually wants, so the defendant can usually serve interrogatories directed to that issue or a formal request for a statement of damages as part of the

discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discove ...

process.

References

Latin legal terminology Latin words and phrases {{Latin-legal-phrase-stub

See also

References