- a writ requiring the party against whom it is brought to show cause why a judgment, letters patent, etc., should not be executed, vacated, or annulled.
- a judicial proceeding initiated by such a writ.
- a judicial writ founded upon some record, such as a judgment, letters patent, etc, requiring the person against whom it is brought to show cause why the record should not be enforced or annulled
- a proceeding begun by the issue of such a writ
