Title 6. Of the Pleadings In Civil Actions · Chapter 2. Pleadings Demanding Relief · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 2006 · Last verified July 28, 2026
Section 425.10 sets the basic content requirements for a complaint or cross-complaint. Subdivision (a) requires two things: a statement of the facts making up the cause of action, written in ordinary and concise language, and a demand for the relief the pleader wants — with the dollar amount stated if the pleader is seeking money or damages.
Subdivision (b) carves out an exception that surprises people used to seeing an ad damnum clause spell out a specific number. For personal injury or wrongful death actions, the amount demanded may not be stated in the complaint. Instead, the complaint has to comply with the caption requirements of § 422.30, and, in a limited civil case, with a specific Government Code disclosure provision. The point is to keep jurors and the public from anchoring on a plaintiff's opening number in cases where damages are inherently uncertain until the evidence comes in.
That gap — no stated dollar figure in the complaint itself — is exactly what §§ 425.11 and 425.115 exist to fill. A defendant who wants to know what is at stake can request a statement of damages, and a plaintiff seeking punitive damages on a default judgment has to serve a separate notice of the amount sought.
Section 425.10(a) requires a statement of the facts constituting the cause of action, in ordinary and concise language, plus a demand for the relief sought. If money or damages are demanded, the amount must be stated — except as § 425.10(b) provides otherwise.
Section 425.10(b) bars stating the amount demanded in an action for actual or punitive damages for personal injury or wrongful death. The complaint instead must comply with § 422.30's caption requirements and, in a limited civil case, a Government Code disclosure requirement.
Section 425.11 lets a defendant request a statement setting forth the nature and amount of damages sought, which the plaintiff must then serve within 15 days.
Yes. Section 425.10 applies by its own terms to both a complaint and a cross-complaint.
Amended by Stats 2005 ch 75 (AB 145),s 32, eff. 7/19/2005, op. 1/1/2006 Amended by Stats 2001 ch 812 (AB 223), s 1, eff. 1/1/2002.