The chapter discusses the equivariant loop theorem for three-dimensional manifolds that is needed in settling the Smith conjecture and reviews the existence theorems for minimal surfaces. The equivariant version of the loop theorem says that there are a finite number of properly embedded disks in <i>M</i> that satisfy the required properties. The loop theorem respects the action of the group <i>G</i> in a suitable manner. The chapter puts a metric on <i>M</i> so that the group <i>G</i> acts isometrically and so that <i>M</i> is convex with respect to the outward normal. Then with respect to this metric, the existence of an immersed disk <i>D</i><sub>1</sub> is demonstrated, in <i>M</i> whose boundary <i> D<sub>1</sub></i>, represents a nontrivial element in <sub>1</sub>(<i>S</i>) and whose area is minimal among all such disks. The chapter describes Morrey's solution for the plateau problem in a general Riemannian manifold. The existence theorem for manifolds with boundary