Rule 9. PLEADING SPECIAL MATTERS

(a) Capacity. The capacity in which one sues or is sued must be stated in one’s initial

pleading.

(b) Fraud, Mistake, Condition of the Mind. In all averments of fraud or mistake,

the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated with particularity. Malice,

intent, knowledge, and other conditions of mind of a person may be averred generally.

(c) Conditions Precedent. In pleading the performance or occurrence of conditions

precedent, it is sufficient to aver generally that all conditions precedent have been performed

or have occurred. A denial of performance or occurrence shall be made specifically and with

particularity.

(d) Official Document or Act: Ordinance or Special Statute. In pleading an

official document or official act it is sufficient to aver that the document was issued or the

act was done in compliance with the law. In pleading an ordinance of a municipality or a

county, or a special, local, or private statute or any right derived therefrom, it is sufficient to

identify specifically the ordinance or statute by its title or by the date of its approval, or

otherwise.

(e) Judgment. In pleading a judgment or decision of a domestic or foreign court,

judicial or quasi-judicial tribunal, or of a board or officer, it is sufficient to aver the judgment

or decision without setting forth matter showing jurisdiction to render it.

(f) Time and Place. For the purpose of testing the sufficiency of a pleading,

averments of time and place are material and shall be considered like all other averments of

material matter.

(g) Special Damage. When items of special damage are claimed, they shall be

specifically stated.

(h) Fictitious Parties. When a party is ignorant of the name of an opposing party and

so alleges in his pleading, the opposing party may be designated by any name, and when his

true name is discovered the process and all pleadings and proceedings in the action may be

amended by substituting the true name and giving proper notice to the opposing party.

re claimed, they shall be

specifically stated.

(h) Fictitious Parties. When a party is ignorant of the name of an opposing party and

so alleges in his pleading, the opposing party may be designated by any name, and when his

true name is discovered the process and all pleadings and proceedings in the action may be

amended by substituting the true name and giving proper notice to the opposing party.

(i) Unknown Parties in Interest. In an action where unknown proper parties are

interested in the subject matter of the action, they may be designated as unknown parties in

interest.

Advisory Committee Notes

A party desiring to raise an issue as to the legal existence, capacity, or authority of a

party must assert such in the answer. If lack of capacity appears affirmatively on the face of

the complaint, the defense may be raised by a motion pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) or Rule

12(c).

“Circumstances” in Rule 9(b) refers to matters such as the time, place and contents

of the false representations, in addition to the identity of the person who made them and what

the person obtained as a result.

Rule 9(g) requires a detailed pleading of special damages and only a general pleading

of general damages. General damages are damages that are typically caused by, and flow

naturally from, the injuries alleged. Special damages are damages that are unusual or atypical

for the type of claim asserted. Special damages are required to be pled with specificity so as

to give the defendant notice of the nature of the alleged damages. Special damages include,

but are not limited to, consequential damages, damages for lost business profit, and punitive

damages. See Puckett Machinery Co. v. Edwards, 641 So. 2d 29, 37-38 (Miss. 1994)

(consequential damages must be plead with specificity); Lynn v. Soterra, Inc., 802 So. 2d

162, 169 (Miss. Ct. App. 2001) (damages for lost business profit caused by defendant’s

blocking of a road are likely special damages)

,

but are not limited to, consequential damages, damages for lost business profit, and punitive

damages. See Puckett Machinery Co. v. Edwards, 641 So. 2d 29, 37-38 (Miss. 1994)

(consequential damages must be plead with specificity); Lynn v. Soterra, Inc., 802 So. 2d

162, 169 (Miss. Ct. App. 2001) (damages for lost business profit caused by defendant’s

blocking of a road are likely special damages). If claimant fails to plead special damages with

specificity, an award for such damages may be reversed. The requirement that special

damages must be stated with specificity will be waived if special damages are tried by the

express or implied consent of the parties pursuant to Rule 15(b).