General denial
Encyclopedia
In pleading
, a general denial is a denial that relates to all allegations which are not otherwise pleaded to. Many legal systems provide that in a statement of defense, any allegation made by the plaintiff
which is not traversed (i.e. specifically denied or "not-admitted") is deemed to have been admitted by the defendants. Accordingly, it became common practice to add a general denial at the end of a statement of defense to make sure that nothing was accidentally admitted in this fashion.
In English law
, a general denial was a relatively common feature of pleading up until the mid-1990s, when the General Council of the Bar, through the Inns of Court School of Law
, began teaching students that it should not be done except in pleadings of unusual length and complexity, and although it is still seen today, it is much less common.
In English law, the usual form of general denial was normally phrased:
Pleading
In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement filed with a court by parties in a civil action, other than a motion...
, a general denial is a denial that relates to all allegations which are not otherwise pleaded to. Many legal systems provide that in a statement of defense, any allegation made by the plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
which is not traversed (i.e. specifically denied or "not-admitted") is deemed to have been admitted by the defendants. Accordingly, it became common practice to add a general denial at the end of a statement of defense to make sure that nothing was accidentally admitted in this fashion.
In English law
English law
English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries and the United States except Louisiana...
, a general denial was a relatively common feature of pleading up until the mid-1990s, when the General Council of the Bar, through the Inns of Court School of Law
Inns of Court School of Law
The Inns of Court School of Law, often abbreviated to ICSL is a professional legal training institution based in London in Gray's Inn...
, began teaching students that it should not be done except in pleadings of unusual length and complexity, and although it is still seen today, it is much less common.
In English law, the usual form of general denial was normally phrased:
- "Except as hereinbefore expressly admitted or not-admitted, each and every paragraph of the statement of claim is denied as if set out herein seriatimSeriatimSeriatim is a legal term typically used to indicate that a court is addressing multiple issues in a certain order, such as the order that the issues were originally presented to the court....
."