What are Pleadings in a Civil Lawsuit?

Pleadings are the legal documents that parties use to communicate their grievances and responses to each other and to the court. 

In summary, they are used to start the litigation process. 

The pleadings consist of the following documents:

What is a Summons?

The summons is the document notifying a defendant of the pending litigation and directing her to respond or appear before the court on a given date.

• Note: Recall that service of process (delivery of the summons) is the basis for a court exercising personal jurisdiction over a defendant.

What is a Complaint? 

The complaint lays out the plaintiff's legal grievances or causes of action against the defendant. 

It must state legally recognized causes of action and be specific enough to allow the defendant to adequately respond (answer) to those allegations. 

Generally, the complaint lays out the following:

• identification of plaintiff and defendant,
• the basis for the courts subject-matter jurisdiction,
• the basis for service of process (courts personal jurisdiction),
• the cause(s) of action against the defendant(s), and
• the request for damages (or other legal or equitable remedy).

What is an Answer to a Complaint? 

The answer is the defendants response to the complaint. The defendant will generally address every point in the complaint in one of the three following ways:

• Admit - Admit the truth of an individual point in the allegation,
• Deny - Deny the truth of the allegation, or
• Lack of Information - Claim a lack sufficient knowledge to admit or deny the allegation.

The defendant may present a counterclaim against the plaintiff. This generally happens within the defendants answer to the plaintiffs complaint. The parties may also include motions requesting action from the court outside of the complaint and answer.

What is a Default?

Under state and federal law, a defendant has a stated period of time to respond to the plaintiffs complaint. 

Most jurisdictions allow 30 days to respond. 

Many jurisdictions also allow an extended period of time to answer the complaint if the defendant is willing to accept service of the summons and complaint by some method other than personal delivery. 

For example, the statute may allow for 60 days to respond if the defendant accepts service of process through the mail. 

If the defendant fails to respond within the allowed period of time, the court will deem the defendant in default. 

What is a Default Judgment?

If a Party is deemed to be in default, the court may render a default judgment in favor of the plaintiff. 

Subject to the courts review and discretion, the default judgment will award the defendant the legal or equitable remedies sought in the complaint. 

A defendant who defaults may be able to later petition the court to set aside the entry of default and judgment. 

To do so, however, the defendant must provide the court with a justifiable reason for setting aside the default and letting the defendant answer the complaint.

Related Topics

• Civil Litigation Procedure (Intro)
• What is a civil lawsuit or civil action?
• Who are the parties to a lawsuit?
• What is standing to sue?
• Venue
• What is personal jurisdiction?
• What is a class action?
• What are the pleadings?
• What is discovery?
• What is the scope of discovery?
• What are motions and how are they used?
• What are frivolous cases?
• Barratry
• What is the process of selecting a jury?
• What are the steps involved in a civil trial?
• What is the burden of proof in a civil trial?
• How is a civil trial decided?
• Adjudication
• Default Judgment
• Stipulated Judgment
• Equitable Defenses
• Equitable Relief
• Doctrine of Clean Hands
• Compensatory Damages
• Punitive Damages
• Replevin
• What is joint and several liability?
• Judgment Proof
• What is the process for appeal?
• Amicus Curiae Brief
• How do parties enforce a civil judgment?
• Levy
• Garnishment
• Writ of Attachment
• Writ of Execution
• Writ of Seizure and Sale
• Sheriff's Sale
• What is res judicata