Once judgment is awarded, the plaintiff has not further need to prove anything. The problem then becomes collecting the money awarded in the judgment. This is neither automatic, nor is it always easy.
A plaintiff starts a lawsuit by filing a complaint and serving the complaint and summons on the defendant (or defendants). If the defendant does not answer the complaint or otherwise respond to the suit, the plaintiff make request a "default judgment." This means, more or less, "the defendant has not responded and the court should therefore grant what I sought in the complaint." Usually, a default judgment will be restricted to the relief sought in the complaint and will be restricted to amounts that are reasonably calculable. For example, say somebody hit you with their car, and you sued for $100,000 in medical bill. If the defendant ignores the lawsuit, the plaintiff will request a default judgment, and the court will likely grant them a $100,000 judgment. The plaintiff will then take the judgment to (most often) the county sheriff's department, which will then seize a defendants property to be sold to pay the judgment; or plaintiff can seek other remedies, like garnishment of wages. Lesson: don't ignore lawsuits. That's how you lose for sure.
You lose. If the defendant doesn't show up for their notified court hearing, a default judgment will be made against them. If the plaintiff doesn't show up, the case will be dismissed. In the case of a defendant, the plaintiff will then go about collecting the award through garnishment of wages and placing liens on property.
The plaintiff will likely present a default judgment to the court, which the court will sign, granting the plaintiff everything requested in the complaint.
"Judgment for Defendant" means that the defendant wins the case. In a criminal case, a judgment for defendant would be a "not guilty" verdict (usually). In a civil case, it would usually mean that the defendant does not have to pay money to the person who sued him or her (known as the "plaintiff").
The plaintiff may obtain a Writ of Execution
Usually the plaintiff moves to enter a default judgment on the complaint. In general, plaintiff will have to prove to the court that proper service of the papers was made on the defendant. In many cases plaintiff may also have to obtain letters from the various armed services branches to prove that the defendant is not away in the military. (This is not as difficult to do as it may sound.) If the court is satisfied that defendant has been properly served and was able to file answering papers but did not, it will let plaintiff prove his/her case either by affidavit or certification or by a proof hearing in court. A complaint is usually not a sworn statement by plaintiff, therefore any allegations in it have not yet been proved under oath. If the complaint is for a debt say on a credit card account, and the defendant defaults in answering the complaint, the credit card company usually has someone prepare an affidavit as to the amount of the debt. This sworn statement is now in evidential form and may be accepted by the court for entry of judgment. Courts will not simply enter a judgment for everything demanded in the complaint unless there is some sworn proofs to back it up. The procedure for this will vary from state to state. The state's laws and court rules must be consulted to find out the exact procedure.
If a plaintiff does not show up, the case may be dismissed. If a defendant does not show up, a default judgment may be entered against them.
The term describes the action taken by the court when the named defendant fails to respond to the lawsuit summons in writing and/or appearance upon the court date. A defendant is not required to make an appearance in court in a creditor suit, but failure to do so means the plaintiff will be automatically be awarded a writ of judgment. Such a judgment can then be executed against the defendant's real and personal property in accordance with the laws of the defendant's state.
If the defendant has no assets, they may not be able to pay a monetary judgment against them. In such cases, the plaintiff may not be able to collect on the judgment unless the defendant's financial situation changes in the future.
In most cases, when a defendant does not appear, the judge will order summary judgment for the plaintiff. (In other words: if you don't show up, you automatically lose and the judgment will generally be the best possible for the other side and the worst possible for you.)
After serving the defendant by publication, the plaintiff must file proof of service with the court. The plaintiff then needs to wait for a specified period of time for the defendant to respond. If the defendant does not respond within the given time frame, the plaintiff can request a default judgment from the court. The court will review the case and may grant the default judgment if all requirements have been met.
If the plaintiff does not appear in court, the case may be dismissed or a default judgment may be entered in favor of the defendant. The plaintiff may lose the opportunity to present their case and the court may rule in favor of the defendant by default.