Introduction
A petition is a written request made in the form of an appeal, generally before a court. A petition may be made by an individual, a group of individuals, or an organisation. A petitioner files a request against a respondent in a case. An order of the court is sought on the matter petitioned seeking relief for the petitioner.
Understanding Petition
A petition is a request made to an organisation, undertaking, or government asking for support or favour for a change in policy or regulations or law.
The parties to a petition are called petitioner and respondent, unlike in a complaint where the parties are called plaintiff and defendant. A petition is filed seeking an order from a court. However, in a complaint, a plaintiff seeks damages from the defendant.
Upon the filing of a petition, the defendant is entitled to receive a copy of the petition and is issued a notice for appearing in the court. In such a case, the subject matter of the petition is taken up for the trial, and the judge passes the verdict or order.
Upon passing of an order, either party (respondent or petitioner) can file an appeal against the order or court decision. Under the appeal filing process, the party filing the appeal is called the appellant.
There are different rules in each state for filing the appeal. However, in general, the first step in the process of appeal filing is the filing of a petition to appeal.
The petition to appeal states the reasons for filing the appeal. It states the reasons for seeking a review of the verdict or order passed. Such petition to appeal may be filed by both the parties who are recipients of the earlier order or verdict. Petition generally requests for dealing with the legal issues in a lawsuit.
Conclusion
A petition can be filed by any person, be it an individual or an organisation. A petition represents the interests of the public at large, an organisation, or a subsection of the public. The petition can challenge a law framed by the Parliament on various legal grounds. The courts, however, have the right to either accept the petition and fix a date for a hearing or reject the petition.
