A severance splits a single lawsuit into two or more independent lawsuits, each of which results in an appealable final judgment. When a trial court grants a severance, the separated causes of action typically proceed to individual judgments—judgments that are themselves separately final and appealable. Causes of action that have been severed from each other into independent lawsuits will be heard by different juries.

In Oregon, severance of claims in a lawsuit is governed by the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure (ORCP) and relevant case law. Severance allows a single lawsuit to be divided into two or more separate lawsuits, each resulting in its own final and appealable judgment. This procedural tool is typically used when claims are sufficiently distinct from one another that separate trials are warranted to avoid prejudice or to promote judicial efficiency. When a trial court grants a severance, the claims proceed independently, and if a jury is required, each severed claim would be heard by a different jury. The decision to grant a severance is within the discretion of the trial court and is subject to certain standards and considerations, such as the prevention of legal prejudice to the parties involved and the facilitation of a more orderly and expeditious resolution of the disputes. Severed actions are treated as if they had been originally filed separately, and the final judgments in these cases are independently appealable, allowing parties to challenge the outcomes without having to wait for the resolution of all claims in the original lawsuit.