The Complaint
Instead of filing a complaint with the court and then obtaining a summons to serve with the complaint, a Plaintiff often does these three things
What is to provide the defendant with the complaint, notice, and request for waiver of service of summons? (Plaintiff must still file Complaint with the court.)
If making this R.12(b)(3) motion, you probably are focused on the appropriateness of the forum, but you also might be seeking dismissal based on a forum-selection clause
What is a motion to dismiss for improper venue?
In considering a R.12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, the court must consider these to be true
What are the non-conclusory facts alleged by the Plaintiff in the complaint?
Under R.12(i), a party that has filed a motion based on one of the Rule 12(b) defenses or on Rule 12(c) can move the court to do this
What is to move the court to decide the motion prior to trial (unless the court has specifically deferred until trial)?
In the answer, a response that the defendant "lacks the information or knowledge to form a belief about the truth of an allegation" is treated as this
What is a denial?
Pursuant to R.8(a), the Complaint must contain a "short and plain statement" of these two things
What are grounds for the court's jurisdiction and the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief?
If you make a R.12(b)(2) motion for this, you might find yourself citing Pennoyer
What is a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction?
A party can file this motion to dismiss at various stages because a court must dismiss a claim if it becomes aware that it lacks the authority to adjudicate the claim
What is a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction?
This motion is not commonly used, but a defendant might use it to object to redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter--a plaintiff also can use it to attack insufficient defenses
What is a R.12(f) motion to strike?
The court will treat a statement that the defendant "neither admits nor denies the allegations in paragraph X" as this--so you'd better not do it
What is an admission?
R.9 requires heightened pleading (or particularized pleading) for these two kinds of allegations
What are fraud and mistake?
You might make this R.12(b)(1) motion if, for example, you don't think that the plaintiff meets the amount-in-controversy
What is a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction?
These four motions will be waived if you do not raise them in your initial response to the complaint--either in your answer or in pre-answer motions
What are R.12(b)(2)-R.12(b)(5)--motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, improper venue, insufficient process, and insufficient service of process?
This R.12(c) motion is filed after all the pleadings are submitted, where the movant believes that no factual disputes control the outcome and that the court can make a judgment on the pleadings alone
What is a motion for judgment on the pleadings?
This happens if a defendant fails to raise an affirmative defense in a responsive pleading
What is waiver (of the affirmative defense)?
If more than one legal theory might entitle the plaintiff to relief, the plaintiff can do this in the Complaint
What is to plead in the alternative?
One of the most common motions, you might file a R.12(b)(6) motion for this
What is a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim (upon which relief can be granted)?
In response to a R.12(b)(6) motion, a court typically will grant leave for the plaintiff to do this, unless the plaintiff has already had multiple opportunities to do so
What is to file an amended complaint?
If a party moves for judgment on the pleadings (R.12(c)) or dismissal for failure to state a claim (R.12(b)(6)), but submits additional supporting material, the court will convert the motion to this
What is a R.56 motion for summary judgment?
If the defendant waives service of process, it usually has this long from the date the waiver request was sent, unless located outside of the United States
What is 60 days?
Rule 7 provides that the term "pleadings" (unlike "motions") technically refers only to these three types of documents filed with the court
What are the Complaint (including third-party complaint), Answer (to complaint, counterclaim, or crossclaim), or a court-ordered Reply to an answer?
This motion attacks the method or mode of giving notice of a lawsuit, rather than the contents of notice itself
What is a Rule 12(b)(5) motion to dismiss for improper service of process?
These two motions must be filed before an answer--they cannot be filed with the answer or after the answer
What is a R.12(e) motion for a more definitive statement and a R.12(f) motion to strike?
Justice Thomas cited this motion as an alternative avenue (to a 12(b)(6) motion) for a defendant who believes that the plaintiff has failed to plead sufficient facts
What is a R.12(e) motion for a more definite statement?
An answer can have these three kinds of components
What are denials & admissions, defenses, and claims (counterclaims or crossclaims)?