Rule 7.Pleadings, Motions, and Objections, General

Rule 7 covers the nuts and bolts every filing must satisfy, regardless of which specific pleading or motion is at issue. The Complaint's caption or body must list every party's name and address. Nothing filed as a letter will be accepted or acted on; filings must be typewritten or printed, double-spaced, on one side of standard 8½-by-11 paper, and factual allegations must appear in numbered paragraphs so both the court and the other side can respond precisely.

Signatures carry consequences under this rule. Every pleading, motion, or objection — along with the Appearance and Withdrawal of counsel — must be signed by the attorney of record, an authorized non-attorney representative, or a self-represented party, with typed or stamped contact information beneath the signature, including the New Hampshire Bar Association member number where applicable. Rule 7(e) explains what that signature means: the signer certifies having read the filing, believing in good faith it has good grounds, and that it is not filed to cause delay. A filing that is unsigned, or signed to defeat that purpose, can be stricken, and the case can proceed as though it were never filed. Rule 7(f) also requires that anything directed to a judge go through the clerk instead — no direct personal appeals to a judge outside the filing process.

Rule 7(g), added in 2018, tightens motion practice: every motion must say "motion" in its title, and a filer cannot bundle multiple, separate requests for relief into one filing — each needs its own motion, and an objection to a pending motion cannot be combined with the filer's own affirmative motion for relief. Rule 7(i) closes the loop on court records, requiring leave of court and a receipt before any document can be withdrawn from the court file.