Decl.

Law & Legal abbreviation · Litigation

Decl.
Stands forDeclaration
CategoriesLaw & Legal

Decl. stands for Declaration, a litigation abbreviation.

Unsworn written statement of facts signed under penalty of perjury, used instead of an affidavit to support motions in federal court and many state courts. Briefs cite it by the declarant's name and paragraph, as in "Lee Decl. ¶ 7".

Example: The plant manager's testimony, Lee Decl. ¶¶ 7-9, describes the safety training each worker received.

Usage notes

Under 28 U.S.C. § 1746, a statement ending "I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct" has the same force as a sworn affidavit, with no notary required. California has a similar rule in Code of Civil Procedure § 2015.5. A knowingly false declaration can be prosecuted as perjury.

More litigation abbreviations

  • AOS – Affidavit of service
  • Br. – Brief
  • CMC – Case management conference
  • COA – Cause of action
  • Compl. – Complaint
  • CPLR – Civil Practice Law and Rules
  • Def. – Defendant
  • Dep. – Deposition
  • DJ – Declaratory judgment
  • Dkt. – Docket
  • EBT – Examination before trial
  • ECF – Electronic Case Files

See all 71 litigation abbreviations →

Edited by the AbbreviationList.com team. Spotted an error or a missing meaning? Contact us.

This entry is for general education and is not legal advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.