the definition of appearance
An appearance is also a coming into court as a party to a civil lawsuit. Although an appearance can be made by either the plaintiff (the one who has sued) or the defendant (the one being sued), the term most often refers to the action of the defendant. The subject of appearance is closely related to the subject of Personal Jurisdiction, which is the court's authority over an individual party. An appearance is some Overt Act by which the defendant comes before the court to either submit to or challenge the court's jurisdiction.