In most English-speaking jurisdictions, including Hong Kong, Nigeria, Australia (except in federal jurisdiction), Canada, the United States, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, the legal term "plaintiff" is used as a general term for the party taking action in a civil case. The word
plaintiff can be traced to the year 1278, and stems from the Anglo-French word
pleintif meaning "complaining". It was identical to "
plaintive" at first and receded into legal usage with the -iff spelling in the 15th century. A plaintiff identified by name in a
class action is called a
named plaintiff. In most common-law jurisdictions, the term "claimant" used in England and Wales since 1999 (see below) is used only in specific, often non-judicial contexts. In particular, in American usage, terms such as "claimant" and "claim form" are limited to extrajudicial process in
insurance and
administrative law. The move, which brings England and Wales out of line with general usage in English-speaking jurisdictions, was reportedly based on an assessment that the word "claimant" is more acceptable as "
plain English" than the word "plaintiff". In
Scottish law a plaintiff is referred to as a "
pursuer" and a defendant as a "defender". The similar term "complainant" denotes the complaining witness in a criminal proceeding. In the
Federal Court of Australia, most plaintiffs are called "applicants", but in admiralty and corporations law matters they are called "plaintiffs". ==In case names==