K.S.A. 60-209.Pleading special matters

Subsection (a) says a pleading need not allege a party's capacity to sue or be sued, a party's authority to sue or be sued in a representative capacity, or the legal existence of an organized association named as a party — anyone who wants to raise those issues must do so through a specific denial that states the supporting facts within that party's knowledge. Subsection (b) draws a similar line for state of mind: fraud or mistake must be pleaded with particularity as to the circumstances involved, while malice, intent, knowledge, and other conditions of mind can be alleged generally.

Subsections (c) through (f) relax pleading requirements for several recurring situations. Conditions precedent can be alleged generally as having occurred or been performed, though a denial that a condition precedent occurred must be made with particularity. An official document or act can be pleaded by alleging it was legally issued or legally done. A judgment or decision of a court, tribunal, board, or officer can be pleaded without showing jurisdiction to render it. And an allegation of time or place is treated as material when a pleading's sufficiency is tested.

Subsection (g) requires special damages to be specifically stated, and if the court allows an amended petition under K.S.A. 60-3703 to add a claim for exemplary or punitive damages, that amended petition must state only whether the amount sought is or isn't in excess of $75,000. Subsection (h) offers three ways to plead a claim, defense, or counterclaim founded on a written instrument: identify it and state its substance, recite its contents in the pleading, or attach a copy as an exhibit.

The last two subsections address narrower situations. When a pleading tenders money, the money doesn't need to be deposited in court before trial unless the court orders otherwise. And in a libel or slander action, a general allegation that defamatory matter was published or spoken about the plaintiff suffices — if that allegation goes undenied in the answer, it doesn't need to be proved at trial — while the defendant's answer can allege both the truth of the matter and any mitigating circumstances that would reduce damages.