Abatement is the interruption of a legal proceeding that prevents the plaintiff from going forward with the suit at that time or in that form.  At one time, abatement of proceedings in equity differed from abatement in law in that the former merely suspended the action, subject to revival when the defect was cured, whereas the latter terminated it, though the plaintiff could start the action anew.

In some jurisdictions, statutes and rules of practice have abrogated the common law rule that termination or transfer of the plaintiff’s interest in the subject matter of an action while it is pending abates the action.

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure under 25(c) provides that in case of any transfer of interest, the action may be continued by or against the original party.

An action generally does not abate due to the appointment of a receiver for one of the parties.[i]  Federal bankruptcy acts have not been construed to permit summary termination of any and all suits in other courts of which the parties had, at the time of the bankruptcy petition, full cognizance.

The appointment of a receiver for an unincorporated association does not abate pending actions at the time of the appointment.  In Duke v. Franklin,[ii]  the court observed that the appointment of a receiver to take charge of the whole or a portion of the property of a corporation for some specific purpose which does not affect the corporate existence does not abate or suspend the prosecution to judgment of actions pending at the time of the appointment.

However, the receiver does not become a party to an action by virtue of his or her appointment, although the receiver may be substituted for the insolvent party without abating the suit.[iii]

[i] Inland Empire Ins. Co. v. Bair, 246 F.2d 505 (10th Cir. 1957)

[ii] 177 Ore. 297, 307 (Or. 1945)

[iii] Gossett v. Green, 137 Tex. 50 (Tex. 1941)