In the world of business, standing is a legal concept used to determine who has the right to bring a lawsuit to court or ask a court to do something else in their favor. Standing essentially means that a person has a right to be heard in court and to have their case considered. It is based on the idea of having a stake or vested interest in the outcome of a case or dispute.
The concept of standing is particularly relevant in business litigation, as it helps establish who has the right to bring a case to court. Generally speaking, the plaintiff must demonstrate that they are directly and personally affected by the actions of the defendant in order to have standing. If the plaintiff cannot show standing, the court may dismiss the case.
For a plaintiff to establish standing, they must show at least one of the following:
- the defendant caused them harm
- the defendant interfered with their rights
- the defendant affected the plaintiff in a concrete and particular way
A recent example of the concept of standing at work in business litigation is the 2018 case of Facebook v. Power Ventures. In this case, Power Ventures sent out mass emails to Facebook users on behalf of their customers, which Facebook argued was a violation of its rights. However, Facebook showed that it had suffered very real and quantifiable financial losses due to Power Ventures’ actions, thus establishing standing and thus winning the case.
In sum, standing is a critical component of any business litigation case. Without it, a plaintiff cannot expect to bring a case to court or to have their case heard. As such, business owners should be cognizant of this legal concept and the many ways it can impact their operations.