litigator

noun

lit·​i·​ga·​tor ˈli-tə-ˌgā-tər 

plural litigators

: one who carries on a legal contest by judicial process : one who litigates legal cases

As a civil-rights litigator, Payton had argued a Richmond, Va., case before the Supreme Court …

—William Greider

For thirty years he had been a ruthless litigator, the meanest, nastiest, and without a doubt one of the most effective courtroom brawlers in Chicago.

—John Grisham

In the 1950's and 60's, he became known as the consummate litigator. Lawyers and judges describe him in the courtroom as wily, charming, eloquent and erudite, with a light but deft touch at cross-examination.

—Jan Hoffman

Examples of litigator in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Unlike Habba, Giordano has significant experience as a federal government litigator, including serving as an assistant attorney general on environmental issues and as a prosecutor in a Virginia U.S. attorney’s office. —Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2025

Meyer’s colleague in those battles was Jeffrey Kessler, the leading athlete-side litigator, now at Winston & Strawn LLP. —Chris Deubert, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025

The firm’s team of 40 lawyers includes former government prosecutors, trial lawyers, commercial litigators, and trust and estate experts, many from the top law schools and blue-chip firms. —Robert Frank, CNBC, 7 Feb. 2025

Although Kessler is a high-profile litigator, including by leading high-profile antitrust lawsuits against the NCAA, NASCAR, U.S. Soccer, the NFL and other major sports defendants, litigators sometimes negotiate resolutions without having to go to court. —Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 25 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1778, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for litigator

• activator
• actuator
• agitator
• alligator
• allocator
• alternator
• animator
• annotator
• applicator
• arbitrator
• aspirator
• aviator

Legal Definition

litigator

noun

lit·​i·​ga·​tor ˈli-tə-ˌgā-tər 

: one that litigates

especially : a lawyer skilled at litigation