Meaning of plaintiff and defendant
20 Meaning of plaintiff and defendant
For a proceeding (other than an application in the proceeding or a proceeding on a counterclaim or third-party notice)—
a reference in these rules to the plaintiff is a reference to the party claiming relief; and
a reference in these rules to the defendant is a reference to the party against whom relief is sought or who otherwise responds to the originating process.
Third-party notice includes a fourth-party notice, a fifth-party notice etc (see r 322 (2) (c)).
Rule 6007 (Application in proceeding—contents) requires an application in a proceeding to identify the person making the application and each person against whom relief is sought.
For a proceeding on a counterclaim or third-party notice (the process)—
a reference in these rules to the plaintiff includes a reference to the party who files and serves the process; and
a reference in these rules to the defendant includes a reference to the person on whom the process is served.
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