(a) Caption; Names of Parties. Every pleading shall contain a caption setting forth the name of the court, the title of the action, the file number, and a designation as in Rule 7(a). In the complaint the title of the action shall include the names of all the parties, but in other pleadings it is sufficient to state the name of the first party on each side with an appropriate indication of other parties.
Rule 10.Form of Pleadings
Chapter III: Pleadings and Motions · Last amended December 26, 2024 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 10 sets the required form for every pleading — captions naming the court and the parties, numbered paragraphs limited to a single set of circumstances, and the right to adopt earlier statements or attach exhibits by reference — and no longer contains a separate subdivision on attaching supporting documents after a 2024 amendment removed it.
Full Text of Rule 10
(b) Paragraphs; Separate Statement. The first paragraph of a claim for relief shall contain the names and, if known, the addresses of all the parties. All averments of claim or defense shall be made in numbered paragraphs, the contents of each of which shall be limited as far as practicable to a statement of a single set of circumstances; and the paragraph may be referred to by number in all succeeding pleadings. Each claim founded upon a separate transaction or occurrence and each defense other than denials shall be stated in a separate count or defense whenever a separation facilitates the clear presentation of the matters set forth.
(c) Adoption by Reference; Exhibits. Statements in a pleading may be adopted by reference in a different part of the same pleading or in another pleading or in any motion. A copy of any written instrument which is an exhibit to a pleading is a part thereof for all purposes.
Advisory Committee Notes
Failure to comply with the requirements of Rule 10(b) is not ground for dismissal of the complaint or striking the answer. Instead, the court, upon a motion or on its own, may order a party to amend the pleading so as to comply with the provisions of Rule 10(b). See, e.g., 3M Co. v. Glass, 917 So. 2d 90, 92-94 (Miss. 2005); Harold’s Auto Parts, Inc. v. Mangialardi, 889 So. 2d 493, 494-95 (Miss. 2004).
Amendment History
Effective December 26, 2024, Rule 10 was amended by deleting M.R.C.P. 10.
Effective April 13, 2000, Rule 10(d) was amended to suggest, rather than require that documents on which a claim or defense is based be attached to a pleading. 753-745 So. 2d XVII (West Miss. Cas. 2000.)
Plain-English Summary
Rule 10 is about form rather than substance: it tells a drafter how a pleading has to look, not what it has to say. Every pleading needs a caption with the court's name, the title of the action, the file number, and the Rule 7(a) designation of what kind of pleading it is. A complaint's title must list every party; later pleadings can shorten that to the first party on each side with an indication that others are involved.
Rule 10(b) asks for discipline in how a pleading is organized. The opening paragraph of a claim for relief must give the names and, if known, the addresses of the parties. From there, every averment goes in a numbered paragraph, each one limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances, so that later filings can refer back to a paragraph by number instead of restating it. Claims arising from separate transactions, and defenses other than plain denials, belong in separate counts whenever splitting them makes the pleading easier to follow. The official Notes make clear this is a guide to clarity, not a trap: a pleading that runs several circumstances together in one paragraph is not thrown out or struck for that reason. Instead, the court can order the pleader to amend so the pleading complies with the rule.
Rule 10(c) lets a pleader borrow from earlier statements instead of repeating them — language in one part of a pleading, or in another pleading or motion, can be adopted by reference elsewhere. And when a written instrument is attached to a pleading as an exhibit, that instrument becomes part of the pleading itself for all purposes, so its terms can be relied on without being retyped into the body of the claim.
The rule used to include a further subdivision addressing when a pleader had to attach the documents a claim or defense relied on. A 2000 amendment already softened that requirement from mandatory to advisory, and a 2024 amendment removed it from the rule entirely, leaving the three subdivisions on captions, paragraphs, and adoption by reference that make up Rule 10 today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What has to appear in the caption of a pleading filed in Mississippi?
Rule 10(a) requires the caption to set out the name of the court, the title of the action, the file number, and the pleading's designation under Rule 7(a). A complaint's title must list every party's name; later pleadings can state just the first party on each side with an indication that other parties exist.
Do I have to put each fact in its own numbered paragraph?
Yes. Rule 10(b) requires numbered paragraphs, each limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances, so a paragraph can be referred to by number in later filings. Claims from separate transactions or occurrences belong in separate counts whenever that makes the pleading clearer.
What happens if my pleading doesn't separate its allegations into clean, single-subject paragraphs?
The official Notes make clear this isn't grounds for dismissing a complaint or striking an answer. Instead, the court may order the pleader — on its own initiative or on a motion — to amend the pleading so it complies with Rule 10(b).
Can I attach a contract or other document to my pleading and rely on its terms without retyping them?
Yes. Rule 10(c) treats a written instrument attached as an exhibit to a pleading as part of that pleading for all purposes, and it lets a pleader adopt statements from one part of a pleading, or from another pleading or motion, by reference rather than repeating them.
Did Mississippi ever require pleaders to attach the documents their claims relied on?
An earlier version of Rule 10 addressed that subject, and a 2000 amendment already changed it from a requirement to a suggestion. A further amendment effective December 26, 2024 removed that subdivision from the rule, leaving the current three subdivisions on captions, paragraph form, and adoption by reference.
Source & verification. Rule text and Advisory Committee Notes are
reproduced verbatim from the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the
Supreme Court of Mississippi. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: ms pleading caption requirementsnumbered paragraphs mississippi complaintattaching exhibits to a complaint msms rule 10 form of pleadingsadoption by reference in a pleading mississippi