In civil litigation, which party is typically the one who answers the petition?

• A. Respondent
• B. Plaintiff
• C. Defendant
• D. Petitioner

Answer: (A)

When a civil action gets started, one side files a petition (or complaint) to set the case in motion. The party who receives that petition is the one who must respond to it, and that responder is called the respondent. Filing an answer lets the respondent admit or deny the allegations and raise defenses, which is the stepping stone to the rest of the case.

The petitioner (or plaintiff) is the initiator of the action, not the responder. The term defendant is often used to describe the opposing party, but the specific role of answering the petition is captured by “respondent” in many jurisdictions.