Is a statement of damages required to be personally served?

You should serve the statement of damages with the summons and complaint to make sure the defendant is on proper notice of the amount of damages they may be held liable for however, there are certain cases in which you are not allowed to put the amount of damages in the complaint. You can file it later when you seek entry of default.

When to file statement of damages in California?

Parties seeking a default against an opposing party must file a statement of damages under the California Code of Civil Procedure (“CCP”) Section 425.11 prior to proceeding.

What’s the rule of thumb for general damages?

The rule of legal-thumb for General Damages are those caused incidental to the main cause of action; a by-product of Defendant’s wrongful act, if you like. So make that distinction clear in your demands. But that does not matter at this point.

Can a claim for general damages be rejected?

In other words, unless you show in no uncertain terms that the pain and suffering caused you to develop (for example) ulcer, shakes, insomnia, internal-bleeding, and other such physical ailments, then, the claim will be rejected. Also, your demand for general damages seems more to be for special damages.

When do you file a statement of damages?

The Statement of Damages must be personally served for defendants who have not yet appeared in the action. (CCP § 425.115 (g).) After the defendant does not timely respond to the complaint, the safest practice is to then personally serve the defendant with a Statement of Damages using Judicial Council Form CIV-050.

When does a California Court default on a statement of damages?

The moving party must wait 30 days after filing and serving their statement of damages before the court can enter a default. (For more on defaults under the California Code of Civil Procedure, see Steps to Move for a Default Judgment in California State Court pursuant to CCP Section 585 ).

How do you state the amount of punitive damages in your complaint?

If you end up taking a default, you are taking an unnecessary risk if you state the amount of punitive damages in the complaint or if you concurrently serve the Statement of Damages with the complaint. You can read the cases cited to in this response by going to www.scholar.google.com.

When do you file a motion for punitive damages?

The request for punitive damages must be served on defendant “before a default may be taken if the motion for default judgment includes a request for punitive damages.”.