Also known as: FRCP 8 · Fed. R. Civ. P. 8 · Rule 8
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A procedural rule requiring that a pleading contain a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief. Courts disregard conclusory allegations and assess whether the remaining well-pleaded facts state a claim that is plausible on its face rather than merely possible.
Fiona Foster sued Freeman Engineering and three competitors alleging they conspired to fix prices. The complaint stated only that the defendants raised prices at the same time and used the same supplier. The court disregarded the bare conspiracy label and found the remaining facts equally consistent with independent action, so it granted the motion to dismiss.
Farid Farahani sued Fisher Foods for breach after the company stopped deliveries. The complaint recited the existence of an agreement and a sudden cutoff but supplied no facts about the contract terms or the reason for termination. The court held the allegations failed to nudge the claim from conceivable to plausible and dismissed the case.
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Forrest Falconer discovered emails showing a partner at the client firm routinely forged signatures on engagement letters to justify higher rates. Because the conduct raised a substantial question about honesty and no confidentiality bar applied, Falconer reported the misconduct to disciplinary authorities.
Fumiko Fujimoto filed a diversity action against Fulton Shipping. Her complaint contained only the single sentence that the action arises under 28 U.S.C. section 1332 and identified the parties' citizenships. The court accepted the statement as satisfying the rule's requirement for pleading jurisdictional grounds.
Felicity French answered a complaint alleging she had received certain documents. She responded that she lacked knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth of the allegation. The court treated the response as a denial under the rule.
Finn Fletcher was charged with multiple offenses arising from one incident. The prosecutor joined all counts in a single indictment. The court upheld the joinder because the charges grew out of the same transaction and satisfied the rule's requirements for trying related offenses together.
A complaint must include a short and plain statement of the claim showing entitlement to relief. Conclusory labels and formulaic recitations of elements are insufficient. The factual allegations, taken as true, must permit the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable.
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The former approach allowed dismissal only if no set of facts could support relief. The current standard requires factual matter that makes liability plausible rather than merely possible or consistent with liability. Courts must disregard bare assertions and evaluate whether the remaining facts support a reasonable inference of wrongdoing.
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No. The rule demands only enough factual content to state a plausible claim. Detailed evidence is not required at the pleading stage, but the complaint must go beyond unadorned accusations and legal conclusions.
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Parallel conduct alone does not satisfy the plausibility standard because it is equally consistent with lawful independent action. The complaint must contain additional nonconclusory facts that tend to exclude the possibility of independent conduct and make an agreement a reasonable inference.
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…the enforcement of state law. "Respondent contends, in the first place, that the charge was correct because of the fact that Rule 8 (c) of the Rules of Civil Procedure makes contributory negligence an affirmative defense. We do not agree. Rule 8 (c) covers only the manner of pleading. The question of the burden of…