Legal Definitions - audita querela

Audita querela is a legal term that means "the complaint having been heard." It is a writ that is available to a judgment debtor who seeks a rehearing of a matter on grounds of newly discovered evidence or newly existing legal defenses.

For example, if a person is sued and loses the case, but later discovers new evidence that could have changed the outcome of the case, they can file a writ of audita querela to ask for a rehearing.

The writ of audita querela was introduced during the time of Edward III and is based on equitable, rather than common law principles. It is different from coram nobis, which attacks the judgment itself, whereas audita querela may be directed against the enforcement, or further enforcement, of a judgment which when rendered was just and unimpeachable.