(a) Caption; Names of Parties. Every pleading shall contain a caption setting forth the name of the court and county or territorial unit and circuit, the title of the action, the docket 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. The complaint shall be dated.
Rule 10.Form of pleadings
Group III: Pleadings and Motions · Last amended March 2, 2020 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 10 sets the required form for every Vermont pleading: the caption, numbered paragraphs, how exhibits attach, and compliance with the state's electronic filing rules.
Full Text of Rule 10
(b) Paragraphs; Separate Statements. 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 a 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 in the same action. A copy of any written instrument which is an exhibit to a pleading is a part thereof for all purposes.
(d) Other Requirements of Form. All pleadings shall comply with applicable format provisions of the 2010 or 2020 Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing.
Notes
Reporter’s Notes—2020 Amendment: Rule 10(d) is amended to clarify that its cross references are to the 2010 or 2020 Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing, if either is applicable.
Reporter’s Notes—2011 Amendment: See Reporter’s Notes to simultaneous amendment making the Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing permanent.
Reporter’s Notes—2010 Amendment: Rules 4(b), (l)(3); 5(b), (e), (f); 6(a), (e); 10(d); 11(a), (b); 26(g); 40(a), (b); 45(a)(1)(G); 77(c), (d); 79(a)(1), (2); 79.1(g) of the Vermont Rules of Civil Procedure rules are amended or added to conform to the Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing as adopted by simultaneous emergency amendment. See Reporter’s Notes to those rules.
Reporter’s Notes—2002 Amendment: Rule 10(a) is amended to reflect the abrogation of the District Court Civil Rules and the resulting applicability of the Vermont Rules of Civil Procedure to District Court civil actions. See Reporter’s Notes to simultaneous amendment of Rule 1.
Reporter’s Notes: This rule is substantially the same as Federal Rule 10, with minor changes adopted from the Maine rule. See former Chancery Rule 4. Rule 10(a) requires that the complaint be dated, in light of the requirement of Rule 4.1(a), that the writ of attachment include that date. The guidelines of Rule 10(b) are designed to promote clarity, but not technicality. See O’Donnell v. Elgin, J. & E. Ry., 338 U.S. 384 (1949). Rule 10(c) was adopted in virtually identical form in 1959 as 12 V.S.A. § 1033 (now superseded). The limitation of adoption by reference to pleadings and motions in the same action, retained from the former statute, reflects the practice under the federal rule in the absence of such language. See 5 Wright & Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 1326 (1969).
Amendment History
Amended Mar. 6, 2002, eff. July 1, 2002; Aug. 17, 2010, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Aug. 30, 2011, eff. Oct. 31, 2011; Dec. 10, 2019, eff. Mar. 2, 2020.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 10(a) tells a party what belongs at the top of every pleading: the name of the court and county or territorial unit and circuit, the title of the action, the docket number, and a designation like the ones Rule 7(a) uses. The complaint's caption must name every party, but later pleadings only need to name the first party on each side, with an appropriate indication that others are involved, and the complaint itself must be dated.
Rule 10(b) requires that every averment of claim or defense appear in a numbered paragraph, each limited as far as practical to a single set of circumstances, so that later pleadings can refer back to a paragraph by number. Claims or defenses resting on separate transactions or occurrences should be split into separate counts when doing so clarifies the matters at issue. Rule 10(c) lets a party adopt statements from one part of a pleading in another part, or in another pleading or motion in the same case, and it makes an exhibit attached to a pleading part of that pleading for every purpose.
Rule 10(d) closes the rule with a cross-reference to the state's technical filing requirements: every pleading must comply with the applicable format provisions of the 2010 or 2020 Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing, whichever applies to the filing in question.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a Vermont complaint's caption include?
The name of the court and county or territorial unit and circuit, the title of the action naming all the parties, the docket number, a designation as in Rule 7(a), and the date the complaint was signed.
Do all pleadings besides the complaint need every party's name in the caption?
No. Rule 10(a) only requires the complaint to name all parties. Other pleadings need only state the name of the first party on each side, with an appropriate indication that other parties exist.
Why must Vermont pleadings use numbered paragraphs?
Rule 10(b) requires numbered paragraphs, each limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances, so that a paragraph can be referred to by number in later pleadings without restating it.
Can I attach a document to a pleading instead of copying its contents into the text?
Yes. Rule 10(c) makes a copy of any written instrument attached as an exhibit part of the pleading for all purposes, and it also lets a party adopt statements by reference to another part of the same pleading, a different pleading, or a motion in the same action.
Does Vermont Rule 10 require pleadings to follow the electronic filing rules?
Yes. Rule 10(d) requires all pleadings to comply with the applicable format provisions of the 2010 or 2020 Vermont Rules for Electronic Filing, whichever applies.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Reporter's Notes, and
amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Vermont Rules of Civil Procedure,
adopted by the Vermont Supreme Court. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: vermont pleading caption requirementsvrcp 10numbered paragraphs vermont complaintexhibits attached to pleading vermontvermont electronic filing rules pleading form