State Court Answer - General Denial - District of Columbia
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Civil Division
| Party | Role |
|---|---|
| [PLAINTIFF NAME], | Plaintiff |
| v. | |
| [DEFENDANT NAME], | Defendant |
Case No.: [________________________________]
Judge / Calendar (if assigned): [________________________________]
DEFENDANT'S ANSWER TO COMPLAINT
Defendant [DEFENDANT NAME] answers Plaintiff's Complaint filed on [__/__/____] as follows:
1. Responses to Allegations
1.1. ☐ General denial. After reasonable inquiry, Defendant in good faith denies every allegation in the Complaint, including its jurisdictional allegations. Defendant uses this paragraph only if every allegation can truthfully be denied. (D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(b)(3), 11(b).)
1.2. ☐ Specific responses. Defendant responds to each numbered allegation in the Complaint below. Add a numbered response for every allegation. For a partly true allegation, identify the admitted part and deny the rest; use lack of knowledge only when accurate after reasonable inquiry. (D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(b)(1)-(6), 11(b).)
1.3. Complaint paragraph [____]: [ADMIT / DENY / ADMIT IN PART / LACK KNOWLEDGE]. [ADMITTED PORTION OR EXPLANATION: ________________________________].
1.4. Complaint paragraph [____]: [ADMIT / DENY / ADMIT IN PART / LACK KNOWLEDGE]. [ADMITTED PORTION OR EXPLANATION: ________________________________].
2. Defenses
Defendant asserts only the following defenses supported by the facts and applicable law. Each stated defense includes its factual basis. (D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(c), 10(b), 11(b).)
2.1. [DEFENSE NAME]: [FACTS SUPPORTING DEFENSE AND APPLICABLE AUTHORITY].
2.2. [DEFENSE NAME]: [FACTS SUPPORTING DEFENSE AND APPLICABLE AUTHORITY].
3. Counterclaim, if pleaded
3.1. Parties and jurisdiction: [________________________________].
3.2. Transaction and facts: [________________________________].
3.3. Claim and legal basis: [________________________________].
3.4. Counterclaim relief requested: [________________________________].
4. Request for Relief
4.1. Defendant asks the Court to enter judgment consistent with the pleaded responses and defenses, award costs or fees only if authorized by applicable law, and grant such other relief as the Court finds proper.
Dated: [__/__/____]
Respectfully submitted,
[ATTORNEY OR SELF-REPRESENTED DEFENDANT SIGNATURE]
[PRINTED NAME AND D.C. BAR NUMBER, IF COUNSEL]
[ADDRESS]
[EMAIL]
[TELEPHONE]
5. Certificate of Service
I certify that on [__/__/____], I served this Answer on [NAME AND ADDRESS OF COUNSEL OR UNREPRESENTED PARTY] by [AUTHORIZED METHOD UNDER D.C. SUPER. CT. CIV. R. 5(b)].
[SERVER SIGNATURE]
[PRINTED NAME]
Sources and References
- D.C. Superior Court Rules of Civil Procedure (2025 compilation), Rules 5, 8, 10–13, and 15.
- Rule Promulgation Order 26-02, effective May 2026; the Rule 5 amendment concerns filing of discovery materials.
About this template
- Last updated
- October 8, 2026
- Citations checked
- October 8, 2026
- Jurisdiction
- District of Columbia
- Category
- Litigation & Court Documents
Legal authority
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(b)-(c) (responses and affirmative defenses)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(a)-(b) (caption and numbered paragraphs)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 11(a)-(b) (signature and factual support)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 12(a), (h) (response time and waiver)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 13(a) (compulsory counterclaims)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 15(a) (amendment)
- D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 5(a)-(b) (service of answer)
These are the filings that drive a lawsuit through the system: complaints, answers, motions, briefs, discovery requests and responses, and post-judgment papers. Each has its own format requirements under federal and state procedural rules, and each has a deadline that cannot be missed without consequences. Clean, procedurally correct filings move a case forward; sloppy ones invite motions to strike, amended responses, and avoidable delays.
Not legal advice
This template is provided for informational purposes. We recommend having an attorney review any legal document before signing, especially for high-value or complex matters.
Checked against the law it cites
A reviewer verified this template's legal citations against the official source on October 8, 2026.
D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(b)-(c) (checked October 8, 2026): "A party that intends in good faith to deny all the allegations of a pleading—including the jurisdictional grounds—may do so by a general denial. A party that does not intend to deny all the allegations must either specifically deny designated allegations or generally deny all except those specifically admitted."
D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 8(c)(1) (checked October 8, 2026): "In responding to a pleading, a party must affirmatively state any avoidance or affirmative defense, including:"
D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(a)-(b) (checked October 8, 2026): "Every pleading must have a caption with the court’s name, a title, a file number, and a Rule 7(a) designation."
D.C. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(b) (checked October 8, 2026): "A party must state its claims or defenses in numbered paragraphs, each limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances."
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