Demurren

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A formal objection raised in a legal context to challenge the legal sufficiency of the opponent's pleadings
2. An assertion in law that defers or rejects a claim without admitting or denying its validity
3. A procedure in which a party contests the sufficiency of a legal complaint while reserving the right to respond further

Etymology: The legal sense began as a plain verb of delay. Anglo-Norman "demurrer" came from Old French "demorer," meaning to linger or delay, which goes back to Latin "demorari," from "de-" plus "morari" (to delay). A medieval pleader who "demurred" paused the proceedings rather than answering the claim head-on. The procedure worked like this: the defendant admits every fact in the plaintiff's complaint, then argues that those facts, even if true, do not add up to a valid legal claim. The objection halts the case until the court decides whether the complaint is legally sufficient. The argument about the law is what stops things, not any dispute over the facts. The everyday English sense of "demur," to object or hesitate, comes from the same source. Your spelling, with "-en," appears to be a variant form of "demurrer," which is the standard English spelling for this legal term.