Legal Intervention

Legal intervention refers to the formal involvement of a third party in a legal process, typically to protect or assert their own interests or rights. In the context of civil litigation, intervention is a procedural mechanism that allows a person or entity who is not originally a party to a lawsuit to join the case if they have a significant interest in its outcome.

There are two main types of legal intervention in civil cases:

• Intervention of Right: This occurs when a third party has a direct interest in the subject matter of the lawsuit, and their ability to protect that interest would be impaired if they were not allowed to join the case. Courts are generally required to permit such intervention if the criteria are met.
• Permissive Intervention: This is at the discretion of the court. It is allowed when the third party’s claim or defense shares a common question of law or fact with the main action, and the intervention will not unduly delay or prejudice the original parties.

To intervene, the third party must file a motion with the court, stating the grounds for intervention and including any relevant claims or defenses. The motion must be served on all existing parties.

Note: The term "legal intervention" can also refer more broadly to any action taken by legal authorities or through legal processes to address a situation, such as law enforcement actions or court orders in family or administrative law matters. However, in the context of civil procedure, it most commonly refers to the process described above.