Download Free Print-Only PDF OR Purchase Interactive PDF Version of this Form
Instructions For Filing Civil Action On Your Own Behalf Form. This is a Maryland form and can be use in District Court Federal.
Loading PDF...
Tags: Instructions For Filing Civil Action On Your Own Behalf, Maryland Federal, District Court
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A
CIVIL ACTION ON
YOUR OWN BEHALF
IN THE
UNITED STATES
DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF
MARYLAND
Rev. 6/2006
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A CIVIL
ACTION ON YOUR OWN BEHALF
These instructions are designed to help you
understand basic court procedures in civil actions.
COURT STAFF CANNOT GIVE YOU LEGAL
ADVICE.
These instructions do not cover all circumstances,
nor all types of cases. It is your responsibility to
comply with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,
the Local Rules of this court and any statutes and
rules which may apply to your particular case. If
you are filing a prisoner civil rights action under 42
U.S.C. §1983, a habeas corpus petition under 28
U.S.C. §2241 or §2254, or a motion to vacate or set
aside sentence under 28 U.S.C. §2255, there are
special forms and instructions available from the
clerk’s office.
How to file a complaint
The first step in filing a lawsuit is to prepare a
complaint. The court has forms available for filing
complaints for employment discrimination and
appealing a denial of Social Security benefits, as
well as a general complaint form. You are not
required to use these forms, although you may find
it helpful to look them over.
If you prepare your own complaint it must be
legibly handwritten or typed. All pages should be 8
½” by 11". The complaint and all other papers filed
with the Court should be two-hole punched at the
top. The first page should begin with the case
caption. The caption includes the name of the
court, the names and addresses of all the parties,
and a blank space for the case number. The case
number will be filled in by court staff once a
number has been assigned.
SAMPLE CAPTION FOR COMPLAINT
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
MARY SMITH,
100 North Calvert Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21202
Plaintiff
vs.
JOHN DOE,
101 West Lombard Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
Defendant
:
:
:
Civil Action No.:
:
:
The body of the complaint is made up of numbered
paragraphs. Explain the facts of your claim, the
2
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
legal basis, why you believe this court has
jurisdiction, and what relief you want. It is not
necessary to cite specific cases. At the end, sign
and date the complaint. Underneath your signature
type or print your full name, address, phone
number, and fax number (if you have one). This
information must appear on every pleading, motion,
or other paper you file.
To file a lawsuit you must file the original
complaint with the court, and one copy of the
complaint for each defendant you name. If the
defendant is an agency of the United States, or an
officer or employee of the United States who is
being sued for acts or omissions related to his/her
employment, you must provide five copies of the
complaint. You should keep a copy of the
complaint for your own records. ALL COPIES
MUST BE IDENTICAL TO THE ORIGINAL.
Along with your complaint you must submit a
summons for the defendant and one copy of the
summons for the court. If more than one defendant
is named AND the time for each defendant to file
an answer is the same, you may list the defendants
on one summons as long as you provide a copy for
each defendant. Use the summons forms provided
by the court. Fill in the caption, leaving the case
number blank. In the space on the summons form
for the name and address of plaintiff’s attorney, fill
in your own name and address. The number of days
3
a defendant will have to answer the complaint will
vary depending on the type of claim and the
defendant. It is your responsibility to fill in the
correct number of days the defendant(s) has for
filing an answer. In most civil actions, if the
defendant is not an agency, officer or employee of
the United States, he or she will have twenty (20)
days in which to answer. If the defendant is an
agency of the United States, or an officer or
employee of the United States who is being sued for
acts or omissions related to his/her employment, he
or she will have sixty (60) days in which to answer.
An exception is that if the defendant is an agency of
the United States AND the complaint is brought
under the Freedom of Information Act, the time for
filing an answer is thirty (30) days. REMEMBER,
THE TIME FOR FILING AN ANSWER RUNS
FROM THE DATE THE COMPLAINT AND
SUMMONS ARE SERVED, NOT THE DATE
THEY ARE ISSUED.
You also must submit a civil cover sheet, along
with one copy for each defendant. This is simply an
information form which is used by the court when
opening your case.
4
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
Filing fees
scan any documents you file.
There is a filing fee of $350.00 for most types of
civil lawsuits. The fee must be paid at the time
your complaint is filed. If you are paying by check
or money order, it should be made payable to
“Clerk, United States District Court.” The court
also accepts major credit cards. If you are unable
to pay the filing fee you may file a motion for leave
to proceed in forma pauperis. If the court grants
this request it means that you will not have to pay
the filing fee at the time your complaint is filed.
Form motions for leave to proceed in forma
pauperis are available from the court. When
completing the forms it is very important that you
answer all questions relating to your income, assets,
and liabilities. If you fail to provide complete and
accurate information your request may be denied or
you may be required to provide additional
information. If your request is denied you will be
allowed a reasonable opportunity to pay the fee.
Once a case is opened, it is sent to the assigned
judge for his or her review. The judge will look at
any motions filed with the complaint and frequently
will look at the complaint to see if it contains all the
necessary information. A judge may require you to
supplement your complaint with additional
information.
What the court does
If you file a motion for leave to proceed in forma
pauperis, the court will not issue a summons for the
defendant(s) until a ruling is made on the motion.
If you pay the filing fee, the summons may be
issued either before or after the assigned judge has
had an opportunity to review the case. This will
depend on a number of factors including the type of
case and work load of the court.
If you submit the appropriate number of copies of
the necessary forms, a case will be “opened.”
Opening a case involves assigning a case number
and a judge, and entering basic information on the
court’s computerized docket system. The court
uses electronic filing in most civil cases. If your
case is subject to electronic filing, court staff will
5
Service
Service of process refers to notifying a defendant
that a lawsuit has been filed, what it is about, and
the time for filing a response. It must be done in a
way specified by court rules. Generally, service
requires giving the defendant a summons issued by
the court, a copy of the complaint, and copies of
any motions or other documents filed along with the
complaint. If there is more than one defendant,
each defendant must be served.
6
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
If you are granted leave to proceed in forma
pauperis, the court may ask the United States
Marshal to serve the summons and complaint. If
the Marshal is asked to make service you will be
sent forms to fill out instructing him where to serve
the complaint. It is your responsibility to provide
an address where service can be made on the
defendant.
HINT
If the defendant is a company which does
business in Maryland, the easiest way to serve the
summons and complaint is on the resident agent.
The resident agent is a person or company with a
Maryland address who is authorized to accept
service of process. You can find out if a
company has a resident agent by contacting the
Maryland Department of Assessments and
Taxation, Charter Information, at (410) 767-1340
or at http://www.dat.state.md.us/bsfd
If you pay the filing fee, when the summons(es) is
issued, it will be returned to you along with the
copies of the complaint for the defendant(s). It is
your responsibility to see each defendant is served
with the summons and complaint. The Marshal
does not serve summonses and complaints in cases
where the filing fee has been paid.
7
The procedures for effecting service are in Federal
Rule of Civil Procedure 4 and Md. Rules 2-121
through 2-125. The two most common ways to
effect service are personal delivery and certified
mail. Personal delivery involves giving the
defendant copies of the summons, complaint, and
any other required documents. Certified mail
involves sending the defendant copies of the
summons, complaint, and any other required
documents by certified mail - “Restricted Delivery show to whom, date, address of delivery.”
Service may be made by anyone who is at least 18
years old and not a plaintiff or defendant in the
case. There are many private process servers who,
for a fee, will serve the defendant(s).
The person who effects service is expected to file
with the court a “return of service.” This is a
statement under oath explaining when service was
made and how.
An alternative to serving a summons is to ask the
defendant to waive service. The procedure for
requesting waiver is set out in Federal Rule of Civil
Procedure 4(d) and Local Rule 103.2.c. Forms for
requesting waiver are available from the court.
WARNING: IF SERVICE IS NOT MADE
WITHIN 120 DAYS FROM THE DATE THE
COMPLAINT IS FILED, THE CASE MAY BE
8
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
DISMISSED. YOU MAY REQUEST AN
EXTENSION OF THIS PERIOD IF YOU CAN
SHOW GOOD CAUSE WHY SERVICE WAS
NOT MADE.
response.
If the defendant files nothing within the time for
filing a response, you may request entry of default
judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55.
What happens after service is made
Discovery
Once a defendant is served several things may
happen: the defendant may file an answer; the
defendant may file a motion; or the defendant may
do nothing. Note: if there is more than one
defendant a combination of these things may
happen.
If the defendant files an answer the judge assigned
to the case will issue a scheduling order. A
scheduling order sets deadlines for doing or filing
certain things in a particular case. It may include
deadlines for completing discovery, filing motions,
and/or filing status reports. Most scheduling orders
do not set trial dates.
There are a number of different motions which may
be filed before an answer is filed. If the motion is a
routine request for an extension of time in which to
answer it will most likely be granted unless you
promptly file an opposition and have a good reason
why it should not be granted. For more substantive
motions, unless directed otherwise, you will be
allowed 14 days to file a response. You may
request an extension of time in which to file a
9
A scheduling order may contain a deadline for the
completion of discovery. Discovery is the process
of obtaining information and evidence relevant to
your case. NOTE: THERE ARE SOME TYPES
OF CASES (SOCIAL SECURITY APPEALS FOR
EXAMPLE) IN WHICH DISCOVERY DOES
NOT OCCUR. There are many different ways to
obtain discovery. The most common are:
interrogatories (written questions), requests for
production of documents, and depositions (a
recorded questioning of a potential witness under
oath). Most discovery requests are directed to
parties in the case, although under certain
circumstances discovery can be obtained from nonparties. Discovery is governed by Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure 26 through 37 and Local Rule 104.
If your case is one in which discovery occurs there
are certain things you should keep in mind. Be sure
to make your discovery requests promptly so that
the party to whom they are directed has sufficient
time to answer or object before the discovery
deadline. It also is important for you to respond to
10
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
any discovery requests you receive. A party who
does not respond to a discovery request may be
subject to sanctions. Do not send copies of
discovery requests or answers to the court unless
directed by the court to do so. Send a copy of the
request to the party from whom you are seeking
discovery and keep the original. Send the original
of any responses you provide to the party seeking
discovery and keep a copy for your records.
Counsel
You are not entitled to have counsel appointed to
represent you in a civil action. A judge has the
authority to appoint counsel in exceptional
circumstances. If you want a judge to consider
appointing counsel to represent you, you may file a
motion for appointment of counsel. In the motion
you should explain why you think you need an
attorney and any efforts you have made to obtain
counsel.
If you can afford to hire an attorney but haven’t
been able to locate one, many local bar associations
have lawyer referral services. Some offer
consultations with attorneys at reduced rates.
Below is a listing of some of the lawyer referral
services in Maryland.
Lawyer Referral Service of Anne Arundel County
Bar Association - 410-280-6961
11
Lawyer Referral and Information Service of
Baltimore City - 410-539-3112
Lawyer Referral Service of Baltimore County Bar
Association - 410-337-9100
Lawyer Referral Service of Caroline County 410-479-1343
Lawyer Referral Service of Carroll County
(Reference Desk) - 410-857-1451 or 800-649-1090
Lawyer Referral Service of Frederick County
(Reference Desk) - 800-649-1090
Lawyer Referral Service of Harford County Bar
Foundation - 410-836-0123
Lawyer Referral Service of Howard County Bar
Association - 410-313-2030
Lawyer Referral Service of Montgomery County
Bar Association - 301-279-9100
Lawyer Referral Service of Prince George's County
Bar Association - 301-952-1440
Court staff CANNOT recommend individual
attorneys.
12
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
There are a number of organizations in Maryland
which provide legal assistance to persons who
cannot afford to hire an attorney. Most of these
organizations have income eligibility requirements.
Many only provide assistance with specific types of
cases.
The largest legal services program in Maryland is
the Legal Aid Bureau, Inc. It has a number of
offices throughout the state. The Central Office is
located at:
Legal Aid Bureau, Inc.
500 East Lexington Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-539-5340
The Central Office can provide you with the
address of the office closest to you and information
about intake procedures. The Legal Aid Bureau
generally does not accept cases where the only
relief being sought is monetary damages.
Information about other providers of legal services
is available on the Maryland Legal Services
Corporation’s web site: http://www.mlsc.org
Things to know about representing yourself
Once your complaint is assigned a case number
everything you receive from the court about your
13
case will have the case number on it. Everything
you send to the court other than the complaint and
motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis
should have the case number on it. On pleadings,
motions, and papers other than the complaint, you
may use a shortened version of the case caption.
The shortened version includes the name of the first
plaintiff, the case number, and the name of the first
defendant. It does not include addresses.
Documents filed with the court are available for
public inspection unless they are sealed by a court
order. To protect your privacy and that of others
who may be mentioned in your case, you should not
include social security numbers (except as required
when appealing a denial of social security benefits),
financial account numbers or dates of birth in
documents you file with the court. If you believe
you need to include this information in full or
submit exhibits which have these numbers in full,
you may request that they be filed under seal.
The court has two locations - one in Baltimore
(Northern Division) and one in Greenbelt (Southern
Division). Unless directed otherwise, all
communications to the court about your case should
be addressed to the clerk of the court in the division
where your case has been assigned. The addresses
are:
Clerk of the Court
14
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
United States District Court
Northern Division
101 West Lombard Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
Clerk of the Court
United States District Court
Southern Division
6500 Cherrywood Lane
Greenbelt, Maryland 20770
YOU MUST NOTIFY THE COURT AND ALL
PARTIES, IN WRITING, OF ANY CHANGE IN
YOUR ADDRESS. FAILURE TO DO SO MAY
RESULT IN DISMISSAL OF YOUR CASE.
After you file the complaint no communication
about your case should be sent directly to any
judge. If you want to ask the court to order
something, you should file a motion. Pleadings and
motions should be filed with the clerk and a copy
should be mailed to the attorney representing the
defendant(s) or directly to the defendant(s) if he/she
does not have an attorney. It is important to
include a certificate of service on anything you file
after your complaint showing when you mailed
copies and to whom they were sent. The certificate
of service appears at the end of the pleading or
motion and looks like the sample below.
15
SAMPLE CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on this 1st day of June 2000, a
copy of the foregoing Motion for Extension of Time was
mailed, postage prepaid, to Samuel Barrister, Esquire, 200
Saint Paul Place, Baltimore, Maryland, 21202, counsel for
Defendant John Doe.
(signature)
It is not necessary to state in the certificate of
service that copies were sent to the court or to the
clerk.
If you are filing a motion and/or memorandum
which relates to discovery, you must file the
original and one copy with the court. For other
types of motions and memoranda you need only file
the original. If you are filing a motion with many
exhibits and providing an extra copy to the court
would be a hardship, you may ask for permission to
file only one copy of the exhibits. Do not file any
motions or memoranda that are longer than fifty
16
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
pages unless you have received permission from the
court. Most motions and memoranda should be
much shorter than fifty pages.
You must sign every pleading, motion, and
memorandum that you file. If more than one party
is representing him/herself in a particular case, each
party representing him/herself must sign each
pleading, motion, or other paper submitted on
behalf of that party.
There are certain issues that you are expected to try
to reach an agreement with the opposing party
about before asking the court to issue an order. If
you want an extension of time in which to file
something or are having a disagreement about
discovery, you are expected to speak with counsel
for the other party and try to reach an agreement
before filing a motion. In your motion, or attached
to it, you should include an explanation of what
happened when you contacted opposing counsel,
i.e., whether he/she agreed to your request or not.
The clerk of this court cannot give persons
representing themselves and proceeding in forma
pauperis blank subpoenas. If you want the court to
issue subpoenas you must submit a motion
explaining who you want to subpoena and why.
Try to file the motion at least two weeks before you
will need the subpoenas.
17
If you lose
BEFORE filing suit you should consider the
consequences of losing. Under limited
circumstances the winning party may ask that you
be ordered to pay his/her attorneys’ fees. The
winning party also is entitled to seek certain costs
which it incurs during a law suit. These costs can
include things such as deposition transcripts,
witness fees, copy work expenses, etc. In many
cases they can easily add up to thousands of dollars.
It is common for a winning party to seek these costs
from the losing party.
Appeals
You may appeal a final decision of this court to the
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth
Circuit. You should consult Federal Rule of
Appellate Procedure 4 for the time limits for filing
an appeal.
The filing fee for an appeal is $455.00. If you
cannot afford to pay the fee you may file a motion
for leave to proceed in forma pauperis on appeal.
To file an appeal, you must file with the clerk of
this court a notice of appeal along with one copy for
the court and one copy for each attorney or pro se
party in the case (other than yourself). A form
notice of appeal is available from the clerk. You
18
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com
also must submit to the clerk of this court either the
filing fee or a motion for leave to proceed in forma
pauperis.
Resources
The forms referred to in this pamphlet can be
obtained from the clerk’s office. The clerk’s office
is open M-F, 9:00 to 4:00. It is closed on federal
holidays and the day after Thanksgiving. Many of
the forms can be downloaded from the court’s web
site: http://www.mdd.uscourts.gov. The Federal
Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules for
the United States District Court for the District of
Maryland also are available on the court’s web site.
Some information about cases filed with the court is
available on the internet. Docket sheets are
available in all cases that are not sealed.
Documents which were filed electronically also are
available. You may access this information with no
charge by using one of the public access computer
terminals available in each courthouse. The
information can be accessed from other locations
for a fee of $.08 per page. To access the
information remotely you need to establish an
account with the PACER Service Center.
Information about PACER can be found at:
http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov.
library in the Baltimore courthouse is open to the
public M-F, 8:30 to 5:00. Because of staffing, the
hours of the library in the Greenbelt courthouse
may vary. You can call the Greenbelt library at
301-344-0663 to find out when it is open.
Maryland circuit courts also have law libraries but
some impose restrictions on their use by members
of the public. Both the University of Maryland and
the University of Baltimore law schools have law
libraries. Many public libraries have basic legal
materials such as court rules.
There are many sites on the internet with legal
materials. One which was designed for use by
Marylanders is the Peoples Law Library http.//www.peoples-law.com.
Additional information about the federal courts can
be found at: http://www.uscourts.gov
Both federal courthouses have law libraries. The
19
20
American LegalNet, Inc.
www.FormsWorkflow.com