Rule 9.Pleading special matters
Group 3: Pleadings and Motions · Last amended April 28, 2015 · Last verified July 13, 2026
Full Text of Rule 9
Amendment History
Prior: RPPP Rule 9. Adopted May 5, 1967, effective July 1, 1967; amended, adopted June 14, 1983, effective Sept. 1, 1983; amended, adopted June 5, 1985, effective Sept. 1, 1985; amended, effective April 28, 2015.
Plain-English Summary
Most of a pleading only needs to be short and plain, but a handful of subjects call for more, or less, detail. Rule 9 handles those exceptions. A party doesn't need to allege that another party has the legal capacity or authority to sue or be sued, or that an association exists at all — those are assumed unless someone specifically challenges them, and a challenge has to include the supporting particulars behind it. Fraud and mistake sit at the opposite end: the circumstances behind them must be stated with particularity, though the state of mind involved — malice, intent, knowledge — can be pled generally.
Several other shortcuts appear throughout the rule. Conditions precedent can be pled with a general averment that all of them occurred, though a denial of that has to be specific. Official documents and acts can be pled by averring compliance with law, without more. Judgments and decisions of another court or tribunal can be pled without laying out that tribunal's jurisdiction. Pleading the existence of a city, town, ordinance, or private statute takes only a brief reference — the date of passage and, for an ordinance or private statute, its title — after which the court takes judicial notice of the rest. Special damages, by contrast, must be specifically stated, and time and place are treated as material averments whenever the sufficiency of a pleading is tested.
Rule 9(k) covers foreign law. A party relying on the law of another U.S. state or territory must plead facts showing that law may apply, or otherwise give reasonable written notice of it. Relying on the law of a foreign country calls for notice of the jurisdiction involved, though the party doesn't have to plead the substance of that law, its expected effect, or the specific materials it will rely on — those can instead be developed through discovery under Rule 26. Foreign law issues can be simplified under Rule 16 and decided in advance of trial under Rule 56. If nobody pleads that foreign law governs, the court applies Washington law at trial unless doing so would work a manifest injustice. None of this shifts or alters which party carries the burden of proof.
Frequently Asked Questions
How specifically must fraud be pled?
The circumstances constituting the fraud or mistake must be stated with particularity. The state of mind behind it — malice, intent, knowledge — may be averred generally.
Do I have to plead that a corporation or association legally exists?
No. It is not necessary to aver a party's capacity to sue or be sued, or the legal existence of an organized association. A party challenging capacity or existence must raise it by specific negative averment with supporting particulars.
How do I plead that another state's law applies?
Set forth facts in the pleading showing that jurisdiction's law may apply, or otherwise give reasonable written notice that it may be relied upon.
How do I plead that a foreign country's law applies?
Give notice in the pleading of the foreign jurisdiction whose law you contend may apply. You do not need to plead the substance of that law, its expected effect, or the specific materials supporting it — those can be developed through discovery.
What happens if nobody pleads that foreign law governs?
The court applies Washington law at trial, unless doing so would result in manifest injustice.
How do I plead special damages?
Items of special damage must be specifically stated in the pleading, unlike ordinary averments, which need only be short and plain.
Do I need to plead the jurisdiction of a court that entered a judgment?
No. In pleading a judgment or decision of a domestic or foreign court, tribunal, board, or officer, it is enough to aver the judgment or decision without showing that jurisdiction to render it existed.