judgment on the merits
Definitions from Case Law · United States Supreme Court
Definitions from Case Law
From 74 U.S. 107 - Durant v. Essex Co. · 1868Most cited · 183 citing opinions
A decree of that kind, unless made because of some defect in the pleadings, or for want of jurisdiction, or because the complainant has an adequate remedy at law, or upon some other ground which does not go to the merits, is a final determination. Where words of qualification, such as 'without prejudice,' or the terms indicating a right or privilege to take further legal proceedings on the subject, do not accompany the decree, it is presumed to be rendered on the merits.
How often courts cite the case defining “judgment on the merits”
Court decisions citing the opinion that defined “judgment on the merits” — 181 in all, by decade. Counts are citations to the defining case as a whole, not verified uses of the term. The dip in the most recent years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the latest years.