Petitioner — the person who files the petition (starts the case). Respondent — the person who must respond to it.
Why it matters: these two words appear on every filing in your case. Know which one you are: they tell you whether you filed the case (petitioner) or are responding to it (respondent). Both people are equal before the court — filing first does not give anyone an advantage.
What it looks like in practice: being the respondent doesn’t mean you’re “losing” or at fault. Many respondents end up with exactly the parenting time or property they wanted — they just answered the petition instead of filing it. The labels mostly affect who goes first at hearings, not who wins.
