ONE FORM OF ACTION There shall be one form of action known as a civil action. All procedural distinctions between actions at law and suits in equity are hereby abolished, except for those distinctions specifically provided for by these rules, by statute, or by the Constitution of this state.
Rule 2.Form of Action
Current through June 1, 2026 · Last verified July 11, 2026
In one sentenceRule 2 collapses the old dividing line between actions at law and suits in equity into a single form of action called a civil action, though rules, statutes, and the Oregon Constitution can still preserve specific procedural distinctions.
Full Text of Rule 2
Amendment History
[CCP 12/2/78]
Plain-English Summary
Before modern procedure rules, Oregon courts, like most American courts, kept two separate tracks: actions at law, which historically covered claims for money damages, and suits in equity, which covered claims for remedies like injunctions or specific performance. Each track had its own pleadings, its own procedural quirks, and its own vocabulary. Rule 2 erases that line. Every civil case in Oregon is now a single “civil action,” filed and processed under one set of rules, regardless of whether the relief sought would once have belonged to a law court or an equity court.
The merger is not absolute. Rule 2 preserves any procedural distinction that a rule, a statute, or the Oregon Constitution still calls for. The right to a jury trial is the clearest example: that right traditionally attached only to claims that would once have been actions at law, so classifying a claim as legal or equitable can still matter even though every case now proceeds as one unified civil action from filing to judgment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Rule 2 mean Oregon no longer distinguishes between legal and equitable claims?
Not entirely. Rule 2 abolishes the procedural split between actions at law and suits in equity — both now proceed as a single civil action under the same rules — but it preserves any distinction that a rule, a statute, or the Oregon Constitution still requires. The clearest surviving distinction is the right to a jury trial, which historically attached only to claims that would once have been actions at law.
What was the difference between an action at law and a suit in equity?
Actions at law traditionally sought money damages and were tried to a jury; suits in equity sought remedies a court fashioned itself, like an injunction or an order of specific performance, and were decided by a judge alone. The two tracks carried different pleading rules and different procedural steps. Rule 2 folds both into one civil action, though the substance of what a party can ask for, and how a claim is classified for purposes like the right to a jury trial, has not disappeared.
Can a single Oregon lawsuit ask for both money damages and an injunction?
Yes. Because Rule 2 makes every civil case one form of action, a complaint can combine claims and requested relief that once belonged to separate law and equity tracks, without filing separate proceedings or following separate procedural rules for each type of relief.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure (ORCP 2). Prescribed by the Council on Court Procedures (ORS 1.735), subject to amendment, repeal, or supplementation by the Oregon Legislative Assembly. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 11, 2026. ·
Official source
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