Answer

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Answer

An answer was originally a solemn assertion in opposition to some one or something, and thus generally any counter-statement or defense, a reply

The reply is a response by plaintiff to defendant's answer. A reply occurs only when defendant has asserted a counterclaim or the court has ordered a reply....
to a question

Question

A question may be either a linguistic expression used to make a request for information, or else the request itself made by such an expression. This information is provided with an answer....
or objection

Objection

An objection is an exclamation of disagreement or opposition, it may also refer to:* Objection , a motion during a trial to disallow a witness's testimony or other evidence...
, or a correct solution of a problem.

In the common law

Common law

Common law refers to law and the corresponding Legal systems of the world developed through legal opinion of courts and similar tribunals , rather than through statute law or Executive ....
, an answer is the first pleading

Pleading

In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement filed with a court by parties in a civil action, such as a complaint, a demurrer, or an answer....
by a defendant

Defendant

A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally indictment or accused of violating a crime statute....
, usually filed and served upon the plaintiff

Plaintiff

A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy, and if successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the plaintiff and make the appropriate court order ....
within a certain strict time limit after a civil complaint

Complaint

In general use, a complaint is an expression of displeasure, such as poor service at a store, or from a local government, etc. In legal terminology, a complaint is a formal legal document that sets out the basic facts and legal reasons that the filing party believes are sufficient to support a claim against another person, persons, entity...
or criminal information

Information

Information as a Conveyed concept has a diversity of meanings, from everyday usage to technical settings. Generally speaking, the concept of information is closely related to notions of constraint, communication, control system, data, form, instruction, knowledge, Meaning , stimulation, pattern, perception, and knowledge representation....
or indictment

Indictment

In the common law legal system, an indictment is a formal accusation that a person has committed a criminal offense. In those jurisdictions which retain the concept of a felony, the serious criminal offense would be a felony; those jurisdictions which have abolished the concept of a felony often substitute the concept of an indictable offenc...
has been served upon the defendant.

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Encyclopedia

An answer was originally a solemn assertion in opposition to some one or something, and thus generally any counter-statement or defense, a reply

The reply is a response by plaintiff to defendant's answer. A reply occurs only when defendant has asserted a counterclaim or the court has ordered a reply....
to a question

Question

Objection

Common law

Pleading

Defendant

Plaintiff

Complaint

Information

Indictment

Demurrer

A demurrer is a legal pleading filed by a party defending against claims or defenses in a lawsuit. The demurrer challenges whether a legal cause of action exists for the facts, as stated by the complaining party....
; if such a motion is unsuccessful, the defendant must file an answer to the complaint or risk an adverse default judgment

Default judgment

Default judgment is a binding judgment in favor of the plaintiff when the defendant has not responded to a summons or has failed to appear before a court of law....
.

The answer establishes which allegations (cause of action

Cause of action

In the law, a cause of action is a set of facts sufficient to justify a right to sue. The phrase may refer to the legal theory upon which a plaintiff brings suit ....
in civil matters) set forth by the complaining party will be contested by the defendant, and states all the defendant's defenses

Defense (legal)

In civil proceedings and criminal prosecutions under the common law, a defendant may raise a defense in an attempt to avoid criminal or civil liability....
, thus establishing the nature and parameters of the controversy to be decided by the court

Court

A court is a body, often a government institution, with the authority to adjudication legal disputes and dispense private law, criminal justice, or administrative law justice in accordance with rules of law....
.

In a criminal case, there is usually an arraignment or some other kind of appearance before defendant comes to court. The pleading in the criminal case, which is entered on the record in open court, is usually either guilt

Guilt

Guilt is a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person understanding or belief - whether justified or not - that he or she has violated a Morality standard, and is responsible for that violation....
y or not guilty. Generally speaking in private, civil cases there is no plea entered of guilt or innocence. There is only a judgment that grants money damages or some other kind of equitable remedy

Equitable remedy

In law, equitable remedies are the remedies developed and granted by the old courts of Equity , such as the Court of Chancery in England, and still available today in common law jurisdictions....
such as restitution

Restitution

The law of restitution is the law of gains-based recovery. It is to be contrasted with the damages, which is the law of loss-based recovery. Obligations to make restitution and obligations to pay compensation are each a type of legal response to events in the real world....
or a permanent injunction

Injunction

An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order, whereby a party is required to do, or to refrain from doing, certain acts. The party that fails to adhere to the injunction faces civil or criminal penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions for failing to follow the court's order....
. Criminal cases may lead to fines or other punishment

Punishment

Punishment is the practice of imposing something suffering on a person or animal, usually in response to disobedient or morally wrong behavior....
, such as imprisonment.

The famous Latin Responsa Prudentium ("answers of the learned ones") were the accumulated views of many successive generations of Roman lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an Attorney at law, counsel or solicitor; a person licensed to practice fraud." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain stability, and deliver justice....
s, a body of legal opinion which gradually became authoritative.

In music an "answer" (also known as countersubject

Countersubject

In music, a countersubject is a melodic or thematic idea which is played against a primary subject of a fugue, ricercar, Invention , sinfonia, or other counterpoint piece of music....
) is the technical name in counterpoint for the repetition or modification by one part or instrument of a theme proposed by another.

Generally, an answer is a reply to a question or is a solution, a retaliation, or a response.

Answer

See also