The individual in whose name a minor's lawsuit is brought, or who appears in court to represent such minor's interest. The French term prochein ami has been used to designate such an individual, but the term guardian ad litem is more commonly used.

At common law, when an individual was unable to look after his or her own interests or manage his or her lawsuit, the court would appoint a person to represent that individual's legal interests. In court terminology this person was called a next friend, which is derived from the French term prochein ami. Individuals requiring a next friend included minors, persons who were mentally ill or mentally retarded, infirm or senile persons, and others whose disabilities prevented them from managing their affairs.

State statutes now set the qualifications and duties of a person who acts as a next friend, but these laws more commonly designate this person a guardian ad litem, or a court-appointed special advocate. Regardless of the designation, this person's responsibilities are now confined to representing a minor or incompetent person in a lawsuit or court proceeding. At common law, a next friend represented a plaintiff, whereas a guardian ad litem represented a defendant. This distinction has been removed in modern law.

A next friend is not a party to a lawsuit but an officer of the court. When the lawsuit is concluded, the next friend's duty ends. The next friend has no right to control the property of the person she or he represents or to assume custody of that person. These rights may be given to a person designated by a court as a minor's or incompetent person's guardian.

Guardians ad litem are commonly used in family and juvenile courts, where the best interests of the child require an independent, neutral person to safeguard the child's rights. The increased number of these representatives has led states to develop training and certification programs for individuals wishing to serve as next friends or guardians ad litem. Though attorneys also may represent juveniles, next friends provide valuable assistance to the courts.

See: infants.

WordNet: next friend

Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: a person who acts on behalf of an infant or disabled person (in law)

Wikipedia: next friend

Next friend, in British law and American law, is the phrase used for a person who represents in an action another person who is under disability or otherwise unable to maintain a suit on their own behalf as a result of their circumstances, who does not have a legal guardian.

This disability often arises from infancy, mental incapacity, or lack of access to counsel, consequently every application to the court on behalf of an infant or a lunatic or a person detained without access to an attorney, who does not have a legal guardian or someone authorized to act on their behalf with a power of attorney, must be made through a next friend (prochein amy, proximus amicus).

Prior to the Married Women's Property Act 1882 in British law (and similar acts in the same time period in American law) it was also usual for a married woman to sue by a next friend, but that act, allowing a married woman to sue in all respects as a feme sole, has rendered a next friend unnecessary in the case of married women.

When a relative who is next of kin acts as a "next friend" for a person, that person is sometimes instead referred to as the natural guardian of the person.

Historically, in the case of an infant, the father is prima facie the proper person to act as next friend; in the father's absence the testamentary guardian if any; but any person not under disability may act as next friend so long as he has no interest in the action averse to that of the infant. A married woman could not historically act as next friend, but this practice is no longer current, at least in the United States. An infant frequently defends a suit, not by a next friend, but by a guardian ad litem often appointed by the court with jurisdiction over the case or a court with probate jurisdiction.

In the case of mental incapacity, a conservator, guardian, or committee, but if they have no such representative, or if the committee has some interest adverse to the claimant, they may sue by a next friend.

A next friend has full power over the proceedings in the action as if he were an ordinary plaintiff, until such time as a guardian or guardian ad litem is appointed in the case, but is only entitled to present evidence on the same basis as any other witness.

One notable use of next friend status was in connection with many suits brought by detainees at Guantanamo Bay prior to the enactment of the Military Commissions Act of 2006.

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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Copyrights:

		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Law Encyclopedia. West's Encyclopedia of American Law. Copyright © 1998 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Next friend". Read more

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