A court of equity ought to do justice completely and not by halves.

Explanation

(English-origin maxim.) When equity takes jurisdiction of a cause, it must grant complete relief — a court cannot resolve part of the dispute and leave the rest, as half-justice is no justice at all.

Where this applies

• A court grants a divorce but refuses to divide the marital property, and the appellate court reverses because equity must resolve the entire matter, not leave it half-done.
• A judge orders a company to stop polluting a river but declines to order cleanup of the existing contamination, and the higher court rules that equity requires complete relief.
• A court rules that a trustee breached his duty but refuses to order an accounting of the missing funds, and the appellate court holds that doing justice by halves is no justice at all.