(a) Capacity. The capacity in which one sues or is sued must be stated in one’s initial pleading.
Rule 9.Pleading Special Matters
Chapter III: Pleadings and Motions · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 9 sets special pleading standards for particular situations: a party's capacity must be stated, fraud or mistake must be pleaded with particularity while a person's state of mind can be averred generally, conditions precedent and official acts can be pleaded generally, and special damages, along with time and place, must be spelled out specifically.
Full Text of Rule 9
(b) Fraud, Mistake, Condition of the Mind. In all averments of fraud or mistake, the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated with particularity. Malice, intent, knowledge, and other conditions of mind of a person may be averred generally.
(c) Conditions Precedent. In pleading the performance or occurrence of conditions precedent, it is sufficient to aver generally that all conditions precedent have been performed or have occurred. A denial of performance or occurrence shall be made specifically and with particularity.
(d) Official Document or Act: Ordinance or Special Statute. In pleading an official document or official act it is sufficient to aver that the document was issued or the act was done in compliance with the law. In pleading an ordinance of a municipality or a county, or a special, local, or private statute or any right derived therefrom, it is sufficient to identify specifically the ordinance or statute by its title or by the date of its approval, or otherwise.
(e) Judgment. In pleading a judgment or decision of a domestic or foreign court, judicial or quasi-judicial tribunal, or of a board or officer, it is sufficient to aver the judgment or decision without setting forth matter showing jurisdiction to render it.
(f) Time and Place. For the purpose of testing the sufficiency of a pleading, averments of time and place are material and shall be considered like all other averments of material matter.
(g) Special Damage. When items of special damage are claimed, they shall be specifically stated.
(h) Fictitious Parties. When a party is ignorant of the name of an opposing party and so alleges in his pleading, the opposing party may be designated by any name, and when his true name is discovered the process and all pleadings and proceedings in the action may be amended by substituting the true name and giving proper notice to the opposing party.
(i) Unknown Parties in Interest. In an action where unknown proper parties are interested in the subject matter of the action, they may be designated as unknown parties in interest.
Advisory Committee Notes
A party desiring to raise an issue as to the legal existence, capacity, or authority of a party must assert such in the answer. If lack of capacity appears affirmatively on the face of the complaint, the defense may be raised by a motion pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) or Rule 12(c). “Circumstances” in Rule 9(b) refers to matters such as the time, place and contents of the false representations, in addition to the identity of the person who made them and what the person obtained as a result. Rule 9(g) requires a detailed pleading of special damages and only a general pleading of general damages. General damages are damages that are typically caused by, and flow naturally from, the injuries alleged. Special damages are damages that are unusual or atypical for the type of claim asserted. Special damages are required to be pled with specificity so as to give the defendant notice of the nature of the alleged damages. Special damages include, but are not limited to, consequential damages, damages for lost business profit, and punitive damages. See Puckett Machinery Co. v. Edwards, 641 So. 2d 29, 37-38 (Miss. 1994) (consequential damages must be plead with specificity); Lynn v. Soterra, Inc., 802 So. 2d 162, 169 (Miss. Ct. App. 2001) (damages for lost business profit caused by defendant’s blocking of a road are likely special damages). If claimant fails to plead special damages with specificity, an award for such damages may be reversed. The requirement that special damages must be stated with specificity will be waived if special damages are tried by the express or implied consent of the parties pursuant to Rule 15(b).
Plain-English Summary
Rule 9(a) requires a party to state, in the initial pleading, the capacity in which it sues or is sued. Rule 9(b) draws a line that runs through a lot of pleading practice: the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake — the who, what, when, and where — have to be pleaded with particularity, but malice, intent, knowledge, and other conditions of a person's mind can be averred in general terms. Rule 9(c) relaxes the standard for conditions precedent: a party can generally aver that all conditions precedent have occurred, while a denial of that averment has to be specific and particular.
Rules 9(d) and (e) do similar work for official acts and judgments. Pleading an official document or act is satisfied by averring that it was issued or done in compliance with the law, and an ordinance or a special, local, or private statute can be identified by its title or the date it was approved rather than quoted at length. Pleading a judgment or decision of a court, tribunal, board, or officer only requires averring the judgment or decision itself, without pleading the facts that show the decision-maker had jurisdiction to render it. Rule 9(f) treats averments of time and place as material, on the same footing as any other averment, when a pleading's sufficiency is tested.
Rule 9(g) requires items of special damage to be specifically stated — a stricter standard than the general pleading rule for damages that flow naturally from the injury alleged. Rules 9(h) and (i) address parties whose identities aren't yet known: a party ignorant of an opposing party's name can designate that party by any name and later substitute the true name once it's discovered, giving proper notice, and unknown parties in interest can likewise be designated as such.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to plead the details of fraud in my complaint?
Rule 9(b) requires the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake to be pleaded with particularity. A person's state of mind, such as intent or knowledge, can still be averred generally.
How do I plead that a condition precedent to my claim was satisfied?
Rule 9(c) allows a general averment that all conditions precedent have been performed or have occurred. A denial of that averment must be specific and made with particularity.
What's the difference between special damages and general damages for pleading purposes?
Rule 9(g) requires items of special damage to be specifically stated. General damages, which flow naturally from the injury alleged, don't require that same level of itemization.
Can I sue someone whose real name I don't know yet?
Rule 9(h) lets a party who is ignorant of an opposing party's name designate that party by any name, then substitute the true name once discovered, with proper notice to that party.
Where do I state the capacity I'm suing or being sued in?
Rule 9(a) requires that capacity to be stated in the initial pleading.
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: mississippi pleading fraud with particularityspecial damages pleading mississippifictitious party unknown defendant mississippiconditions precedent pleading rule 9mrcp rule 9 special matters