| Instructions
These instructions are to help you represent yourself in a civil
lawsuit after the complaint has already been filed. Legal words
and court documents can be confusing. Information about filling
out forms may make you more comfortable with the procedure when
you come to court. These instructions will give you some useful
information and instructions on filling out any additional
necessary forms.
Every case is
different and these instructions are to be used as a guide only;
if you think you need more help you may want to get an
attorney. You can also go to a
Court Service Center or contact the
Connecticut Network for Legal
Aid or
find additional information at the Law Libraries.
Court Staff can help you understand the legal process, and while
they may give you procedural information, they cannot
give you legal advice.
Some forms that you may need after a
lawsuit has started and the Complaint has been filed are:
By
filing an Appearance form you are telling the court that
you are acting as your own attorney and giving the court your
mailing address. Once you file an Appearance, all court notices
and papers filed about your case that are filed after your
Appearance will be sent to the address on your Appearance.
Filling out the Appearance form makes sure that both the Court
and the parties in a case have a current mailing address for
each party in the lawsuit. It is important to fill out this
form in order to receive any court notices, and to give the
other parties in your case a correct address for correspondence
about the case. For the party that starts the case (the
plaintiff), the Appearance information is taken from the Civil
Summons. Each Defendant in the case must fill out an Appearance
form by the return date listed on the Civil Summons. If any party in
the case has a change of address, the Appearance form is used to
report the change of address. There is a box at the top of the
Appearance form to check that the form is being filled
out because of a change of address.
The Certificate of Closed Pleadings is the form to get your case
onto the list of cases that are ready for a trial. The
Certificate of Closed Pleadings may be filled out by either
party in the case when “the pleadings are closed”. The
pleadings are usually considered closed when the claims of one
party have been answered by the other party. For example, if
the complaint is answered but then a special defense is filed,
the plaintiff must file a reply to the special defense before
either party can file the Certificate of Closed Pleadings.
A
Scheduling Order is used to help move a case along. The court
will tell you when you have to fill one out. Scheduling orders
have deadlines for the exchange of discovery, the disclosure of
witnesses, a timeline for filing papers, and any other time
sensitive issues in a case. The deadlines in a scheduling order
must be followed. If they are not followed, the court may take
action against the party who does not follow them and, if it is
the plaintiff who does not follow them, the case could be
dismissed.
A
Motion for Continuance is the form to fill out if you need to
ask the court to change the date of when you have to come to
court. Before you fill out and file this form, you must let
all the other parties know that you are asking for a continuance.
You must say on the form if the other party or parties agree
(consent) to your request.
The Withdrawal form is the form to fill out if you would like to
end your case or if you would like to ask the court to not act
on a motion you filed. Only the party that filed the case or
the motion may fill out and file a Withdrawal. For example,
the Plaintiff, the person that brought the case is the only one
that can withdraw it. For a motion, only the party that filed
the motion can withdraw it. If the Plaintiff withdraws his or
her case, the Plaintiff cannot withdraw any Counterclaim by a
defendant. In a case with a complaint and a cross-complaint, if
the complaint is withdrawn, the cross-complaint would still be
active.
You may go to any Court Service Center for help filling out
these or any other forms.
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