(a) Claims for Relief. A pleading which sets forth a claim for relief, whether an original claim, counterclaim, cross- claim or third-party claim, shall contain (1) a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief, and (2) a demand for judgment for the relief the pleader seeks. Relief in the alternative or of several different types may be demanded.
Rule 8.General Rules of Pleading.
Last amended September 7, 2010 · Last verified July 6, 2026
In one sentenceRule 8 sets the baseline for every Alaska pleading: a claim needs only a short, plain statement showing entitlement to relief plus a demand for judgment, a response must admit or deny each point and raise any of a long list of affirmative defenses like fraud or the statute of limitations, and an unaddressed allegation is deemed admitted.
Full Text of Rule 8
(b) Defenses—Form of Denials. A party shall state in short and plain terms the party’s defenses to each claim asserted and shall admit or deny the averments upon which the adverse party relies. If a party is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of an averment, the party shall so state and this has the effect of a denial. Denial shall fairly meet the substance of the averments denied. When a pleader intends in good faith to deny only a part or a qualification of an averment, the pleader shall specify so much of it as is true and material and shall deny only the remainder. Unless the pleader intends in good faith to controvert all the averments of the preceding pleading, the pleader may make denials as specific denials of designated averments or paragraphs, or may generally deny all the averments except such designated averments or paragraphs as the pleader expressly admits; but when the pleader does so intend to controvert all its averments, the pleader may do so by general denial subject to the obligations set forth in Rule 11.
(c) Affirmative Defenses. In pleading to a preceding pleading, a party shall set forth affirmatively accord and satisfaction, arbitration and award, assumption of risk, contributory negligence, discharge in bankruptcy, duress, estoppel, failure of consideration, fraud, illegality, injury by fellow servant, laches, license, payment, release, res judicata, statute of frauds, statute of limitations, waiver, and any other matter constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense. When a party has mistakenly designated a defense as a counterclaim, or a counterclaim as a defense, the court on terms, if justice so requires, shall treat the pleading as if there had been a proper designation.
(d) Effect of Failure to Deny. Averments in a pleading to which a responsive pleading is required, other than those as to the amount of damage, are admitted when not denied in the responsive pleading. Averments in a pleading to which no responsive pleading is required or permitted shall be taken as denied or avoided.
(e) Pleading to Be Concise and Direct—Consistency.
(1) Each averment of a pleading shall be simple, concise and direct. No technical forms of pleading or motions are required.
(2) A party may set forth two or more statements of a claim or defense alternatively or hypothetically, either in one count or defense or in separate counts or defenses. When two or more statements are made in the alternative and one of them if made independently would be sufficient, the pleading is not made insufficient by the insufficiency of one or more of the alternative statements. A party may also state as many separate claims or defenses as the party has regardless of consistency and whether based on legal or on equitable grounds or on both. All statements shall be made subject to the obligations set forth in Rule 11.
(f) Construction of Pleading. All pleadings shall be so construed as to do substantial justice.
Amendment History
(Adopted by SCO 5 October 9, 1959; amended by SCO 1153 effective July 15, 1994; by SCO 1269 effective July 15, 1997; and by SCO 1740 effective nunc pro tunc to September 7, 2010)
Notes
Note: In 1996, the legislature enacted AS 45.08.114, which establishes special pleading requirements in an action on a certificated security against the issuer. According to § 70 ch. 17 SLA 1996, this statute has the effect of amending Civil Rule 8 by requiring that a denial of a signature on a certificated security be specific or the signature is admitted, and by requiring a denial even if a responsive pleading is not required.
Note: Chapter 54 SLA 2005 (HB 95) enacted extensive amendments and new provisions related to public health, including public health emergencies and disasters. According to Section 13(a) of the Act, AS 18.15.375(c)(3),(d), and (e), and 18.15.385(d)–(k), enacted in Section 8, have the effect of amending Civil Rule 8 by adding special proceedings, timing, and pleading requirements for matters involving public health.
Note: Chapter 64, SLA 2010 (SB 60), effective September 7, 2010, enacted changes relating to the Uniform Probate Code. According to section 12(c) of the Act, AS 13.12.545 and 13.12.550, as enacted by section 8 of the Act, have the effect of amending Civil Rule 8 by establishing special requirements for the contents of petitions under AS 13.12.530 and 13.12.535, enacted by section 8 of the Act.
Plain-English Summary
A claim for relief, whether it's an original claim, a counterclaim, a cross-claim, or a third-party claim, needs only a short and plain statement showing the pleader is entitled to relief and a demand for the judgment sought — relief in the alternative or of several types is fine. On the other side, a response must admit or deny each point; saying there isn't enough information to know counts as a denial, and a party may deny part of an averment while admitting the rest, or issue a general denial if it means to contest everything (subject to the same good-faith obligations Rule 11 imposes).
Rule 8(c) lists roughly twenty affirmative defenses — among them accord and satisfaction, arbitration and award, assumption of risk, contributory negligence, discharge in bankruptcy, duress, estoppel, fraud, illegality, laches, release, res judicata, the statute of frauds, the statute of limitations, and waiver — that a party must raise affirmatively or risk losing them. If a party mislabels a defense as a counterclaim or the reverse, the court treats the pleading as if it had been labeled correctly. Anything left undenied in a required response is treated as admitted, except the amount of damages claimed, and every pleading is read to do substantial justice rather than trip over its own wording.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much detail does an Alaska complaint need?
Just a short and plain statement showing the pleader is entitled to relief, plus a demand for judgment; a party may seek several kinds of relief, including in the alternative.
What happens if I don’t respond to an allegation?
Under (d), an allegation in a pleading that calls for a response is treated as admitted if it isn’t denied, except for the amount of damages claimed; allegations that don’t call for a response are treated as denied.
What defenses have to be raised affirmatively or risk being lost?
A list of about twenty in (c), including fraud, duress, estoppel, the statute of limitations, res judicata, and waiver — raising them late can mean losing the right to rely on them.
Source & verification. The rule text, Amendment History, and Notes are reproduced verbatim from the
official Alaska Rules of Civil Procedure (Alaska R. Civ. P. 8). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Alaska (Alaska Const. art. IV, § 15). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 6, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: short and plain statement Alaskaaffirmative defenses Alaskaanswering a complaint Alaskafailure to deny is admissiongeneral denial AlaskaAlaska R. Civ. P. 8