Seriatim
Encyclopedia
Seriatim is a legal term typically used to indicate that a court
Court
A court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...

 is addressing multiple issues in a certain order, such as the order that the issues were originally presented to the court.

A seriatim opinion describes an opinion delivered by a court with multiple judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

s, in which each judge reads his or her own opinion rather than a single judge writing an opinion on behalf of the entire court. This is a practice generally used when a case does not have a majority opinion.

Most frequently used in modern times (when used at all) pleadings as a shorthand for "one by one in sequence". For example, in English
English law
English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries and the United States except Louisiana...

 civil cases, defence statements
Statement of case
A statement of case is any of a number of formal documents used in the courts of England and Wales. The Particulars of Claim, Defence and Reply are all statements of case.-External links:**...

 generally used to conclude with the phrase "save as expressly admitted herein, each allegation of the plaintiffs is denied as if set out in full and traversed herein seriatim." This formulation is now discouraged under the English Civil Procedure Rules, especially rule 16.5 (3)-(5)http://www.justice.gov.uk/civil/procrules_fin/contents/parts/part16.htm#IDAVRI5B.

Also sometimes seen in older deeds and contracts as a more traditional way of incorporating terms of reference. For example "the railway by-laws shall apply to the contract as if set out herein seriatim."

Use of the word (and other Latin phrases) has become less frequent in legal discourse as a result of, among other factors, efforts by groups such as the Plain Language Movement
Plain Language Movement
The Plain Language Movement is an effort to eliminate unnecessarily complex language from academia, government, law, and business.International and national organizations in the movement include:...

 to promote the use of "plain English
Plain English
Plain English is a generic term for communication styles that emphasise clarity, brevity and the avoidance of technical language – particularly in relation to official government communication, including laws.The intention is to write in a manner that is easily understood by the target...

" in legal discourse.

It is sometimes found as part of the longer phrase brevatim et seriatim, meaning "briefly and in series".
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