in·stance /'in-stəns/ n [French, from Late Latin instantia, from Latin, the fact of being present or impending, vehemence in speech, urgency, from instant- instans insistent, pressing, from present participle of instare to be pressing, stand upon]: the institution or prosecution of a lawsuit
a court of first instance
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.