§54.5 Purpose and Procedure

• Jurisdiction: Washington

§54.5PURPOSE AND PROCEDURE

CR 54(a) provides definitions for the terms "judgment" and "order." Ajudgment is the "final determination of the rights of the parties in the action." It must be in writing and signed by the judge. Ajudgment includes any decree or order from which an appeal lies. Every other written direction of a court or judge that is not ajudgment is an order.

CR 54(b) addresses the complexities that arise in cases involving multiple claims and/or multiple parties. The purpose of CR 54(b) is to facilitate bringing timely closure to distinct parts of a multiple-party or multiple-claim lawsuit. As the United States Supreme Court has observed, the liberalized procedural rules that encourage joinder of issues and parties also give rise to an increased danger of hardship through delay if each issue must await determination of all issues in the case before a final judgment may be entered. Dickinson v. Petroleum Conversion Corp., 338 U.S. 507, 70 S. Ct. 322, 94 L. Ed. 299 (1950).

The competing consideration that is balanced in CR 54(b) is the policy against piecemeal...