Judgement is also known as adjudication which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The power or faculty of judgement to render judgements in seeking understanding of ideas and the things they represent by means of ratiocination, using good or poor discernment or judgement. A judgment may require monetary compensation or transfer of property from one party to another. Judgments can also have non-monetary requirements, such as instructing one party to perform a service for the other.

Judgment also has legal definitions and refers to “a judicial decision given by a judge or court” or “the obligation, especially a debt, arising from a judicial decision.” A judge awards a judgment to a creditor that needs to collect money from a debtor. A court can also give a judgment in favor or against a defendant.

If someone has been harmed in some way, they will seek to resolve the dispute in court and collect damages by filing a lawsuit. The resulting court judgment orders the loser of that lawsuit to pay the winner a specified sum of money. Most of the time, a judgment will be for a sum of money because money is the most appropriate form of compensation for the harm. A judgment, paid or unpaid, will remain on the debtor's credit report for seven years, but it will have a worse effect on their credit score if it is unpaid.