A trial is a judicial examination of issues in an action, whether of law or fact. Issues arise where a pleading of one party maintains a claim controverted by an adverse party. Issues are either of law or fact. An issue of fact arises on a material allegation of fact in a pleading which is denied in an adversary's pleading or by operation of law. All other issues are issues of law which must be tried first.
Rule 1.901.Trials and issues
Division IX: Trial and Judgment · Last amended February 15, 2002 · Last verified July 15, 2026
In one sentenceRule 1.901 defines a trial as the judicial examination of an action's legal or factual issues, explains that an issue of fact arises from a material factual allegation denied in the pleadings or by law, and requires issues of law to be tried before anything else.
Full Text of Rule 1.901
Plain-English Summary
Rule 1.901 lays down the vocabulary the rest of the trial rules build on. A trial, in Iowa practice, is the judicial examination of the issues in an action — nothing more than that. Issues themselves come from the pleadings: one party's pleading makes a claim, and an adverse party's pleading controverts it.
Those issues split into two kinds. An issue of fact exists when a material factual allegation in one pleading is denied in an adversary's pleading, or is denied by operation of law rather than by an actual filed denial. Everything that is not an issue of fact is an issue of law.
The rule also sets an order of operations: issues of law must be tried first. That sequencing makes practical sense — a legal issue can dispose of a case, or reshape what factual questions are left to try, so resolving law questions before turning to the facts avoids wasted effort on a factual dispute a legal ruling might make irrelevant.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as an issue of fact under Rule 1.901?
A material allegation of fact in one party's pleading that an adversary's pleading denies, or that is denied by operation of law, creates an issue of fact.
Are issues of law and issues of fact tried in a particular order?
Yes. Rule 1.901 requires issues of law to be tried first, before turning to any issues of fact.
How does an issue arise in the first place?
Rule 1.901 describes an issue as arising where one party's pleading maintains a claim that an adverse party's pleading controverts.
What is a trial, as this rule defines it?
Rule 1.901 defines a trial as a judicial examination of the issues in an action, whether those issues are of law or of fact.
What happens to an allegation that is not specifically denied?
Rule 1.901 treats an issue of fact as arising from a denial, whether by an adversary's pleading or by operation of law, which connects to the pleading rules elsewhere governing when a failure to deny amounts to an admission.
Source & verification. Rule text and the Comment are
reproduced verbatim from the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the
Iowa Supreme Court. Last verified July 15, 2026.
· Official source
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