Legal Definitions - scienter action

Scienter Action

A scienter action is a type of lawsuit where the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant knew about the danger or acted knowingly. For example, a lawsuit for damage caused by a domestic animal.

1. A person sues their neighbor for damages caused by their dog. In order to win the lawsuit, the person must prove that the neighbor knew the dog was dangerous and could cause harm.

2. A company is sued for selling a product that they knew was defective and could cause harm to consumers. The plaintiff must prove that the company acted knowingly and intentionally sold the defective product.

The examples illustrate the definition of a scienter action by showing that the plaintiff must prove that the defendant acted knowingly or knew of the danger. In the first example, the plaintiff must prove that the neighbor knew the dog was dangerous. In the second example, the plaintiff must prove that the company knew the product was defective and could cause harm. Without this knowledge, the plaintiff cannot win the lawsuit.