The Wall Street Journal,1 New York Law Journal2 and Judge William Pauley of the Southern District recently addressed the backlog in civil cases stemming in part from the expansive pleadings that have become routine by both sole practitioners and big law firms. The trend may have evolved from the holdings in two U.S. Supreme Court cases in 2007 and 2009.
Judge Pauley’s memorandum order in UPS v. Hagan3 noted that court dockets are experiencing a “troubling trend toward prolixity”4 from practitioners ignoring Rule 8 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that the pleading must “contain a short and plain statement of the claim.” The complaint in UPS was 175 paragraphs with 1,400 exhibits, and the answer was 210 pages consisting of 1,020 paragraphs with 11 counterclaims and voluminous exhibits.
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