Noun

Singular court

Plural courts

court (plural courts)

1. An enclosed space; a courtyard; an uncovered area shut in by the walls of a building, or by different building; also, a space opening from a street and nearly surrounded by houses; a blind alley.
2. The residence of a sovereign, prince, nobleman, or ether dignitary; a palace.
3. The collective body of persons composing the retinue of a sovereign or person high in authority; all the surroundings of a sovereign in his regal state.
4. Any formal assembling of the retinue of a sovereign; as, to hold a court.
5. Attention directed to a person in power; conduct or address designed to gain favor; courtliness of manners; civility; compliment; flattery.
6. The hall, chamber, or place, where justice is administered.
7. The persons officially assembled under authority of law, at the appropriate time and place, for the administration of justice; an official assembly, legally met together for the transaction of judicial business; a judge or judges sitting for the hearing or trial of causes.
8. A tribunal established for the administration of justice.
9. The judge or judges; as distinguished from the counsel or jury, or both.
10. The session of a judicial assembly.
11. Any jurisdiction, civil, military, or ecclesiastical.
12. A place arranged for playing the game of tennis, basketball and some other games; also, one of the divisions of a tennis court.

A court is a body, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes and dispense civil, criminal, or administrative justice in accordance with rules of law. In common law and civil law states, courts are the central means for dispute resolution, and it is generally understood that all persons have an ability to bring their claims before a court. Similarly, those accused of a crime have the right to present their defense before a court.

Court facilities range from a simple farmhouse for a village court in a rural community to huge buildings housing dozens of courtrooms in large cities.

A court is a kind of deliberative assembly with special powers, called its jurisdiction, or jus dicere, to decide certain kinds of questions or petitions put to it. According to William Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England, a court is constituted by a minimum of three parties, namely, the actor, reus, and judex, though, often, courts consist of additional attorneys, bailiffs, reporters, and perhaps a jury.

The term "court" is often used to refer to the president of the court, also known as the "judge" or the "bench", or the panel of such officials. For example, in the United States, and other common law jurisdictions, the term "court" (in the case of U.S. federal courts) by law is used to describe the judge himself or herself.

In the United States, the legal authority of a court to take action is based on three pillars of power over the parties to the litigation: (1) Personal jurisdiction; (2) Subject matter jurisdiction; and (3) Venue.