Delaware Answer to a Complaint
In Delaware your answer is due within 20 calendar days under Superior Court Civil Rule 12(a). DocDraft drafts it, attorney review available.
Introduction
A Delaware Answer to a Complaint is the written response you file after you are served with the summons and complaint in a civil lawsuit. It admits or denies the complaint's allegations, raises the affirmative defenses you intend to rely on, and, if you have a related claim of your own, includes a counterclaim. Delaware splits civil cases across three trial courts, and where your case sits decides how you respond. In the Superior Court and the Court of Common Pleas, Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 12(a) and Ct. Com. Pl. Civ. R. 12(a) both give you 20 days after service of process to serve an answer. There is no statewide fill-in answer form for those courts, so the answer is a typed pleading on a caption that complies with Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(a). The Justice of the Peace Court is different. A debt or trespass action there directs you to complete and return J.P. Civ. Form 7 within 15 days, while a summary possession (eviction) case requires no written answer at all because you appear at the trial date the Court sets. Miss your deadline in a court that requires an answer and the plaintiff can take a default judgment under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 55(b). DocDraft drafts a Delaware-formatted answer from your facts, with attorney review available before you file.
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Key Things to Know
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Your deadline in the main civil courts is 20 calendar days. In the Superior Court and the Court of Common Pleas, Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 12(a) and Ct. Com. Pl. Civ. R. 12(a) both require you to serve an answer within 20 days after service of process. Because 20 days exceeds the short-period threshold in Rule 6(a), weekends and holidays are counted.
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There is no statewide answer form for Superior Court or Common Pleas. The answer is a typed pleading on a caption that complies with Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(a), naming the court, the parties, and the case number. Only the Justice of the Peace Court provides a fill-in answer, J.P. Civ. Form 7.
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Which court you are in depends on the amount. The Justice of the Peace Court hears small claims up to $25,000, the Court of Common Pleas hears civil cases up to $75,000, and the Superior Court hears cases over $75,000. The summons names the court you must answer.
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A small claims case has its own 15-day rule. In a Justice of the Peace Court debt or trespass action, the summons directs you to complete and return J.P. Civ. Form 7 within 15 days of receiving the summons under Del. J.P. Ct. Civ. R. 12. A written answer is required, so this is not a no-answer track.
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An eviction case requires no written answer. In a summary possession action in the Justice of the Peace Court, no answer is sent to the Court before trial; you appear at the trial date the Court sets. You may demand a jury trial in writing within 10 days of being served under Del. J.P. Ct. Civ. R. 38.
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There is no fee to file an answer, and waivers exist. The plaintiff's initial filing fee covers the answer, so the answer filing fee is $0. If you cannot afford court costs, you can apply to proceed in forma pauperis using JP Civil Form No. 49 based on inability to pay.
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A related claim may be compulsory. Under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 13, a counterclaim that arises out of the same transaction or occurrence as the plaintiff's claim is compulsory and must be raised with your answer, and the statute of limitations on a written contract is three years under 10 Del. C. § 8106.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Answer to a Complaint in Delaware, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Answer to a Complaint guide walks through them.
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Delaware Requirements for Answer to a Complaint
20-Day Answer Deadline
In a general civil case in the Superior Court or the Court of Common Pleas, your answer is due within 20 days after service of process under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 12(a) and Ct. Com. Pl. Civ. R. 12(a). Because 20 days exceeds the short-period threshold in Rule 6(a), weekends and holidays are counted on the calendar. A Justice of the Peace Court debt or trespass action uses a 15-day window.
Typed Pleading or J.P. Civ. Form 7
There is no statewide fill-in answer form for the Superior Court or the Court of Common Pleas, so the answer is a typed pleading that responds to each allegation. The Justice of the Peace Court provides J.P. Civ. Form 7 for a debt or trespass action, which is enclosed with the complaint and summons.
Court Caption
Caption the answer for the court named in the summons, which is the Superior Court for civil cases over $75,000, the Court of Common Pleas for cases up to $75,000, or the Justice of the Peace Court for small claims up to $25,000. The caption must comply with Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 10(a) and include the court, the parties' names, and the case number.
File With the Court Named in the Summons
File your answer in the court named in the summons: the Prothonotary for the Superior Court, the Clerk of the Court for the Court of Common Pleas, or the Justice of the Peace Court. E-filing through File & ServeXpress is mandatory in the Superior Court and Court of Common Pleas under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 79.1, though pro se litigants may file in paper.
Serve a Copy on Each Party
Under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 5(b), serve a copy of your answer on each of the parties by mail, delivery, or electronic service if you are e-filing, and keep proof of service.
No Answer Fee, Waiver Available
The fee to file an answer in Delaware is $0, because the plaintiff's initial filing fee covers the case and there is no separate answer fee. If you cannot afford court costs, apply to proceed in forma pauperis using the Application and Affidavit to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, JP Civil Form No. 49, based on inability to pay.
Affirmative Defenses
State each affirmative defense you intend to rely on, such as statute of limitations, payment, release, accord and satisfaction, statute of frauds, fraud, estoppel, or waiver. The statute of limitations on a written contract in Delaware is three years under 10 Del. C. § 8106.
Compulsory Counterclaim If Any
Under Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 13, a counterclaim that arises out of the same transaction or occurrence that is the subject matter of the plaintiff's claim is compulsory and must be raised with your answer, or you can lose the right to bring it later. A claim from a different transaction may be raised as a permissive counterclaim.