Order 30 — Pleadings: General

(1) A Claimant shall serve a statement of facts in the manner prescribed in Order 3 of these Rules together with copies of documentary evidence therein mentioned on the defendant, or, if there are two or more defendants, on each defendant, and shall do so either when the general form of complaint, or notice of the general form of complaint, is served on the defendant unless the Court or Judge otherwise orders.

(2) A Statement of facts shall include the relief or remedy to which a Claimant shall claim to be entitled.

(1) A defendant who enters appearance and intends to defend the actions shall, at the time of filing the memorandum of appearance, unless the Court gives leave to the contrary, serve on the Claimant:
(a) a statement of defence which may include any preliminary objection the defendant wishes to raise to the Claimant’s action;
(b) a list of witnesses to be called at the trial;
(c) a Written Statement on oath of the witnesses;
(d) copies of every document to be relied on at the trial; and
(e) a list of non-documentary exhibits.

(2) A Defendant shall file a Statement of Defence, Set-off or Counterclaim not later than fourteen (14) days after service on the Defendant of the Claimant’s Originating Process and accompanying documents. A counterclaim shall have the same effect as a cross action, so as to enable the Court pronounce a final judgment in the same proceedings. A Set-Off must be specifically pleaded.

(3) A Claimant shall within fourteen (14) days of service of the Statement of Defence and Counter-claim; file a reply, if any, to such Defence or Counterclaim.
Provided that where a Defendant sets up a Counter-Claim, and if a Claimant or any other person named as party to such Counter-Claim contends that the claim thereby raised ought not to be disposed of by way of Counter-Claim, but in an independent proceeding, a Judge may at any time order that such CounterClaim be excluded.

(1) Every pleading shall contain a statement in summary form of the material facts on which the party pleading relies for the party’s claim or defence, as the case may be, but not the evidence by which they are to be proved and shall, when necessary be divided into paragraphs and numbered consecutively.
In case of conflict, the words shall be preferred.

(2) Dates, sums and numbers shall be expressed in both figures and words.

(3) Pleadings shall be signed by a Legal Practitioner or by a party where such party sues or defends in person.

(4) The facts shall be alleged positively, precisely, and distinctly, and as briefly as is consistent with a clear statement.

In all cases in which the party pleading relies on any misrepresentation, fraud, breach of trust, willful default, or undue influence and in all other cases, in which particulars may be necessary, particulars (with dates and items if necessary) shall be stated in the pleadings.

A further and better statement of the nature of the claim or defence, or further and better particulars of any matter stated in any pleading, notice or process requiring particulars, may on application to the Court, be ordered upon such terms as to costs and otherwise, as may be just.

(1) Every allegation of fact in any pleading if not specifically denied in the pleadings of the opposite party, shall be taken as admitted, except as against a person under legal disability.

(2) A general denial in any pleading shall not operate as denial of any specific fact contained in the pleadings of the opposing party.

Each party shall specify distinctly in the party’s pleadings any condition precedent, the performance or occurrence of which is intended to be contested.

(1) All grounds of Defence or Reply which make an action unmaintainable or which if not raised will take the opposite party by surprise or will raise issues of facts not arising out of the pleadings shall be specifically pleaded.

(2) Where a party raises any ground which makes a transaction void or voidable or such matters as limitation law, release, payment, performance, facts showing insufficiency in the contract of employment or illegality either by any enactment or by common law, the party shall specifically plead same.

No pleading, not being a petition or summons, shall, except by way of amendment raise any new ground of claim or contain any allegation of fact inconsistent with the previous pleadings of the party pleading the same.

A party may by the party’s pleadings join issues upon the pleading of the opposing party and such joinder of issues shall operate as a denial of every material allegation of fact in the pleading upon which issue is joined except any fact which the party may be willing to admit.

Wherever the contents of any documents are material, it shall be sufficient in any pleading to state the effect of the document(s) as briefly as possible, without setting out the whole or any part the document(s), unless the precise words of the document or any part of the same are material.

Wherever it is material to allege notice to any person of any fact, matter or thing, it shall be sufficient to allege such notice as a fact, unless the form or the precise terms of such notice or the circumstances from which such notice is to be inferred are material.

Wherever any contract or any relationship between persons is to be implied from a series of letters or conversations, or otherwise from a set of circumstances, it shall be sufficient to allege such contract or relationship as a fact, and to refer generally to such letters, conversation or circumstances without setting them out in detail. If in such a case the party so pleading desires to rely in the alternative upon more contracts or relationships than one as to be implied from such circumstances, the party may in the alternative state the same.

A party may not allege in any pleadings any matter or fact that the law presumes in the party’s favour or as to which the burden of proof lies upon the other side, unless the same has first been specifically denied.

In every case in which the cause of action is a stated or settled account, the same shall be alleged with particulars, but in every case in which a statement of account is relied on by way of evidence or admission of any other cause of action which is pleaded, the same may not be alleged in the pleadings.

No technical objection shall be raised to any pleading on the ground of any alleged want of form.

Wherever it is material to allege malice, fraudulent intention, knowledge or other condition of the mind of any person, it shall be sufficient to allege the same as a fact without setting out the circumstances from which the same is to be inferred.

(1) The Judge may at any stage of the proceedings order to be struck out or amended any pleading or the indorsement of any writ in the action, or anything in any pleading or in the indorsement, on the ground that:
(a) it discloses no reasonable cause of action or defence, as the case may be; or
(b) it is unnecessary, scandalous, frivolous or vexatious; or
(c) it may prejudice, embarrass or delay the fair trial of the action; or
(d) it is otherwise an abuse of the process of the Court;
and may order the action to be stayed or dismissed or judgment to be entered accordingly, as the case may be.

(2) No evidence shall be admissible on an application under sub-rule (1) (a) of this rule.

(3) This rule shall, so far as applicable also apply to an originating summons as if the summons or petitions, as the case may be, were a pleading.

(4) No proceeding shall be open to objection on the ground that only a declaratory judgment or order is sought thereby and a Judge may make a binding declaration of right whether any consequential relief is or could be claimed or not.

(1) Where a Defendant fails to file a defence within the fourteen (14) days prescribed by the Rules, pleadings may be deemed closed.

(2) Where a pleading subsequent to Reply is not ordered, then at the expiration of seven (7) days of the service of the Defence or Reply (if a Reply has been filed) pleadings may be deemed closed.

(3) Where a pleading subsequent to Reply is ordered, and the party who has been ordered or granted leave to file the same fails to do so within the period prescribed for that purpose, then, at the expiration of the period so prescribed, pleadings may be deemed closed.
Provided that this Rule shall not apply to a defence to counter-claim and unless the Claimant files a defence to counter-claim, the statements of fact contained in such counter claim shall at the expiration of fourteen (14) days from the service thereof or such time (if any) as may by order be allowed for filing of a defence thereto be deemed to be admitted, but the Court may at any subsequent time give leave to the Claimant to file a Defence to CounterClaim.