This is the party who brings a civil claim. Tort claims are civil claims.The word “Plaintiff” has the same origin as the word “Complaint”. In other words it is the one who files a complaint. The complaint in civil litigation is the paper that is filed at the courthouse to begin the lawsuit.
In criminal litigation there technically is no plaintiff. However there is what is called a complaining witness. The complaining witness is the victim of the crime but sometimes may be the arresting police officer.
The word “Complaint” may sound a bit harsh. The plaintiff is not complaining about anything. Rather he is seeking some relief for an injury suffered as a result of the alleged behavior or lack thereof by the defendant.
For more info on this subject see the pages on Wikipedia.
