Gravamen (from
Lat. ''gravare'', to weigh down; ''gravis'', heavy), (plural gra·va·mens or gra·vam·i·na) is a complaint or grievance, the ground of a
legal action
In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of action) that the filing party or parties (the plaintiff(s)) believes are sufficient to support a claim against the party ...
, and particularly the more serious part of a charge against an accused person. In legal terms, it is the essential element of a
lawsuit.
In English the term is used chiefly in legal submissions and
judicial opinion
A judicial opinion is a form of legal opinion written by a judge or a judicial panel in the course of resolving a legal dispute, providing the decision reached to resolve the dispute, and usually indicating the facts which led to the dispute and ...
s. The word is commonly misspelled '.
Apart from the normal usage of the word, the gravamen test is used in
contract law
A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...
to distinguish between the
sale of goods and services in "hybrid" transactions. Under the test each component of the sale is isolated and individually determined to be either a good or a service.
The more common approach used by courts is the predominant purpose test which looks at the general thrust of the exchange rather than each individual component.
The term is also used in
ecclesiastical courts, being the technical designation of a memorial presented from the Lower to the Upper
House of Convocation, setting forth grievances to be redressed, or calling attention to breaches in
church discipline
Church discipline is the practice of church members calling upon an individual within the Church to repent for their sins. Church discipline is performed when one has sinned or gone against the rules of the church. Church discipline is practiced wi ...
.
References
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{{Authority control
Canon law of the Anglican Communion
Criminal law