Pleading Special Matters

(a) Capacity or Authority to Sue; Legal Existence. (1) In General. Except when required to show that the court has jurisdiction, a pleading need not allege: (A) a party’s capacity to sue or be sued; (B) a party’s authority to sue or be sued in a representative capacity; or (C) the legal existence of an organized association of persons that is made a party. (2) Raising Those Issues. To raise any of those issues, a party must do so by a specific denial, which must state any supporting facts that are peculiarly within the party’s knowledge. the particularity (b) Fraud or Mistake; Conditions of Mind. In alleging fraud or mistake, a party must state with circumstances constituting fraud or mistake. Malice, intent, knowledge, and other conditions of a person’s mind may be alleged generally. pleading Precedent. conditions precedent, it suffices to allege generally that all conditions precedent have occurred or been performed. But when denying that a condition precedent has occurred or been performed, a party must do so with particularity. (c) Conditions In (d) Official Document or Act. In pleading an official document or official act, it suffices to allege that the document was legally issued or the act legally done. (e) Judgment. In pleading a judgment or decision of a domestic or foreign court, a judicial or quasi-judicial tribunal, or a board or officer, it suffices to plead the judgment or decision without showing jurisdiction to render it. RCFC 9 18 (f) Time and Place. An allegation of time or place is material when testing the sufficiency of a pleading. (g) Special Damages. If an item of special damage is claimed, it must be specifically stated. (h) Admiralty or Maritime Claim. [Not used.] (i) Inverse Condemnation Claim. In pleading a claim for just compensation under the Fifth Amendment States Constitution, a party must identify the specific property interest alleged to have been taken by the United States. the United of (j) Citation to Statutes, Regulations, and Orders. In pleading a claim founded on a statute, regulation, or executive order, a party must include the citation to the act of Congress, regulation of an executive department or agency, or Executive Order of the President on which the claim is founded. (k) Contract or Treaty. In pleading a claim founded on a contract or treaty, a party must identify the substantive provisions of the contract or treaty on which the party relies. In lieu of a description, the party may annex to the complaint a copy of the contract or treaty, indicating the relevant provisions. (l) Patent Claim. In pleading a patent infringement, a party must describe the patent or patents alleged to be infringed. (m) Tax Refund Claim. In pleading a claim for a tax refund, a party must: (1) file the unredacted pleading under seal (without a motion to file under seal) and concurrently file on the public docket a redacted version of the pleading that conforms to RCFC 5.2 and also redacts the identification number of any taxpayer; and (2) include: (A) a copy of the claim for refund, and (B) a statement identifying: (i) the tax year(s) for which a refund is sought; (ii) the amount, date, and place of each payment to be refunded; (iii) the date and place the return was filed, if any; (iv) the name, address, identification number of and the taxpayer(s) appearing on the return; (v) the date and place the claim for refund was filed; and (vi) the identification number of each plaintiff, if different from the identification number of the taxpayer. (n) Ownership of a Claim; Assignment. In pleading a claim or part of a claim, ownership of which was acquired by assignment or other transfer, a party must include a statement upon what describing when consideration the assignment or transfer was made. and (o) Action by Another Tribunal or Body. In relying on an action by another tribunal or body, a party must describe the action taken on the claim by Congress, a department or agency of the United States, or another court. (p) Prior Litigation. In pleading a claim that has been previously presented to another court, whether in whole or in part or directly or indirectly, a party must include a statement identifying the effect, if any, of the prior litigation on this court’s subject matter jurisdiction. (As revised and reissued May 1, 2002; as amended Nov. 3, 2008, July 2, 2012, July 2, 2018, July 31, 2023, July 28, 2025.) Rules Committee Notes 2002 Revision Subdivision (a) (relating to “Capacity”) has been changed to conform to FRCP 9. (h)(6) (relating Subdivision to special requirements applicable to complaints in “Tax Refund Suits”) was amended by prescribing, as additional information to be included as part of a tax refund complaint, the following: (i) the taxpayer’s or filer’s identification number; and (ii) a copy of the claim for refund. Subdivision (h)(7) was added as a means to clarify the nature of the property interest asserted to have been taken in an inverse condemnation action. 2008 Amendment The language of RCFC 9 has been amended to conform to the general restyling of the FRCP. In addition, former subdivision (h) (“Special Matters Required in Complaint”), comprised of paragraphs (1) through (7), has been reorganized as separate subdivisions (i) through (o), and a requirement was added to new subdivision (m) (“Tax Refund Claim”) directing that taxpayer identification numbers be included under seal. 2012 Amendment RCFC 9(p) has been added to require a claimant to address the effect, if any, that a pending prior suit brought in another court may have on this court’s jurisdiction in light of 28 U.S.C. § 1500. See United States v. Tohono O’Odham Nation, 563 U.S. 307, 131 S. Ct. 1723 (2011). 2018 Amendment RCFC 9(m) has been amended to require the filing of a redacted version of the pleading that conforms to RCFC 5.2. 2023 Amendment RCFC 9(m)(1) has been amended to clarify that a redacted version of the sealed pleading must be filed publicly at the same time the sealed pleading is filed, and that all taxpayers, both individuals and non-individuals, are covered by the rule. 2025 Amendment RCFC 9(m)(1) has been amended to underscore the requirement that a party must file both an unredacted complaint under seal and a redacted version for public availability.