Barratry (common law)

Barratry, at common law, is a criminal offence committed by a person who is overly officious in instigating or encouraging the prosecution of groundless litigation, or who brings repeated or persistent lawsuits for the purpose of profit or harassment rather than any genuine grievance. The word derives from the Old French barat, meaning deceit or trickery. Although some jurisdictions still treat barratry as a crime, many have abolished it as an anachronistic and largely obsolete offence. Where barratrous litigation is used to silence critics or suppress public participation, it is now more often described as a strategic lawsuit against public participation, or SLAPP, and a number of jurisdictions that no longer have barratry statutes instead address this conduct through separate anti-SLAPP laws.