Complaint

A complaint is the document that starts a lawsuit. It names the plaintiff and the defendants, describes what happened and why the defendants are responsible, and states what the plaintiff is asking for. In some states, including Texas, it is called a petition.

Origin

Complaints are the first pleading in civil cases under the federal rules and state court rules. Modern rules require a short, plain statement of the claim rather than the elaborate forms of older common-law pleading. Some busy asbestos dockets use standard or master complaints that individual cases adopt with case-specific details.

Significance in Asbestos Context

An asbestos complaint often names many defendants at once: product manufacturers, distributors, property owners and others the plaintiff's work history ties to the exposure. It states the disease, the claims (such as negligence, product liability, failure to warn or wrongful death) and the kinds of damages sought. Filing the complaint usually stops the statute of limitations clock for the named defendants, so it is often filed promptly after a diagnosis, especially with mesothelioma. Naming the right court matters too, because venue and jurisdiction rules affect where a case can be heard. Defendants can be added later if new evidence identifies them, though time limits still apply. The complaint is a public record in most courts, which some families want to know before filing.

Example Sentence

Two weeks after her mesothelioma diagnosis, her lawyer filed a complaint naming eighteen companies whose products she had worked around.

Related Terms

Plaintiff, Defendant, Answer, Service of Process, Statute of Limitation, Venue, Product Identification

Notes

• A complaint is usually public; ask your lawyer what personal and medical details it will include.
• Give your lawyer every job, product and location you can remember before the complaint is filed; it is easier to name defendants at the start.