interplead

The court ordered the two claimants to interplead to determine who should sue the third party.

Definition

Verb (Law): - To initiate a legal proceeding to determine a right or claim: "interplead" is a legal term meaning that a person holding property or money that is claimed by two or more parties asks a court to decide which party has the valid claim, rather than resolving the dispute themselves.

Usage Examples

• (The bank asked the court to decide who rightfully owns the money.)
• (The executor filed a court action to settle the competing claims.)

Advanced Usage

• "to interplead as a stakeholder": to act as a neutral party who deposits the disputed property with the court.
  • The insurance company interpleaded as a stakeholder after two beneficiaries claimed the same policy payout. (The company filed an interpleader action to avoid liability.)

Variants and Related Words

• Interpleader (noun): the legal action or proceeding itself.
  • The court granted the interpleader, ordering all claimants to present their evidence. (The court allowed the neutral party to step aside.)

Synonyms

• Join issue: to formally dispute a point in court.
• File a bill of interpleader: a specific legal term for this action.

Related Idioms

• "to put the matter before the court": a general phrase for referring a dispute to judicial authority.
  • Rather than decide alone, she put the matter before the court to interplead the conflicting claims. (She sought a legal ruling.)

Phrasal Verbs

• Interplead with: to initiate a legal action involving multiple claimants.
  • The landlord interpleaded with the court to resolve the rent dispute between two tenants. (The landlord sought a judicial decision.)