The Online Asbestos, Asbestos Cancer, & Mesothelioma Authority
Cause of Action
This is better known as the grounds (for a legal action, for bringing suit, etc.) or the claim. Cause of action is the legal term for the basis of or conditions that entitle the plaintiff to file suit against the defendant.
A cause of action will be one of two types: a legal claim, which is based on the specific laws of a particular jurisdiction (state, county or municipal) or an equity claim. Unlike a legal claim, equity claims are based on principles of common law, and focus on legal remedies that restore or compensate someone for a loss or injury. These injuries include (but are not limited to) physical injury (which includes illness if it can be proved that the defendant played a contributory role), invasion of privacy, fraud, slander, medical or legal malpractice, and infliction of emotional distress.
There are two parts to a cause of action: the alleged wrong suffered by the plaintiff, and the remedy. Like its medical counterpart, a legal remedy provides relief; this is provided as a court order which requires the defendant to take action (such as paying monetary damages) or to cease and desist from an action (such as harassment).
Elements of the case consist of the evidence that a plaintiff must present in order to win his/her case. In a typical suit in which the cause of action is a work-related illness because of negligence on the part of the employer, the elements plaintiff must demonstrate are duty, breach, proximate cause and damages. The plaintiff must show that the defendant - in this case, the former employer - owed a duty to either inform the plaintiff of the hazard or provide protective equipment, deliberately failed in this duty, that the hazard was the cause of said injury or illness, and the physical and financial hardship incurred as a result.
Should a plaintiff fail to provide evidence that clearly supports these elements, the defendant may move to dismiss the case on grounds of failure to state the claim - and the judge will likely do so.