§12.5 Purpose and Procedure

• Jurisdiction: Washington

§12.5 PURPOSE AND PROCEDURE

The purpose of CR 12 is to expedite and simplify the pretrial process by setting the time limits for answering or replying to claims, specifying how defenses must be presented, listing various pleadings-related motions that may be made, and stating when certain procedural defenses are waived.

The time periods within which a defendant must serve an answer are specified by CR 12(a): 20 days, exclusive of the day of service, after the service of the summons and complaint pursuant to rule 4; 60 days from the date of the first publication of the summons if the summons is served by publication in accordance with CR 4(d)(3); 60 days after the service of the summons if the summons is served personally out of the state in accordance with specified statutes; and the period fixed by any other applicable statutes or rules. CR 12(a) also sets 20-day time periods for serving pleadings responding to a cross claim or counterclaim. The service of a motion permitted by CR 12 alters those periods to 10 days after notice of the court's action if the court denies the motion or postpones its disposition, and 10 days after service of a more definite statement if the court grants a motion for a more definite statement. Those 10-day periods can be changed by order of the court.

Prior to the adoption of rule 12, a defendant could file a series of motions to dismiss a complaint, based upon different defenses. This practice was anything but efficient. Now, under CR 12(b), every defense, in law or fact, to a claim for relief in any pleading, including counterclaims, cross claims, or third-party claims, must be asserted in a responsive pleading if one is required, except that seven specified defenses may, at the pleader's option, be made by motion.

A motion making any of the defenses enumerated in CR 12(b)(l)-(7) must be made before pleading if a further pleading is permitted. The rule does not require a responding party to bring a motion raising rule 12 defenses prior to filing a responsive pleading, however; the defenses may simply be asserted in a pleading.

Under CR 12(g), if a party fails to raise four specified defenses (lack of jurisdiction over the person, improper venue, insufficiency of process, or insufficiency of service of process) in either a consolidated motion, a responsive pleading, or an amendment permitted as a matter of course, those defenses will be waived and cannot later be asserted by motion. Note, however, that a...