(a) Caption; names of parties. Every pleading shall have a caption with the court’s name, a title, a civil action number, and a Rule 7(a) designation. The title of the complaint shall name all the parties; the title of other pleadings, after naming the first party on each side, may refer generally to other parties.
Rule 10.Form of pleadings
Current through January 1, 2025 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 10 sets the physical form of every pleading -- a caption naming the court and parties with a civil action number, claims and defenses stated in numbered paragraphs, and exhibits that become part of the pleading.
Full Text of Rule 10
(b) Paragraphs; separate statements. A party shall state its claims or defenses in numbered paragraphs, each limited as far as practicable to a single set of circumstances. A later pleading may refer by number to a paragraph in an earlier pleading. If doing so would promote clarity, each claim founded on a separate transaction or occurrence—and each defense other than a denial— shall be stated in a separate count or defense.
(c) Adoption by reference; exhibits. A statement in a pleading may be adopted by reference elsewhere in the same pleading or in any other pleading or motion. A copy of a written instrument that is an exhibit to a pleading is a part of the pleading for all purposes.
Amendment History
The current West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure took effect January 1, 2025, as part of a rewrite that modernized the rules’ numbering and structure. West Virginia does not publish a per-rule amendment history inside the compiled rules text reproduced here. The text above is verified current through the source’s own January 1, 2025 update; for the underlying adopting order and any later amendments, see the West Virginia Judiciary’s compiled rules page.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 10 covers the mechanics of putting a pleading together. Every pleading needs a caption with the court's name, a title, a civil action number, and a designation of which of Rule 7(a)'s pleading types it is. The complaint's title has to name every party; later pleadings can name the first party on each side and refer to the rest generally.
Claims and defenses go in numbered paragraphs, each limited as far as practical to a single set of circumstances, so later pleadings can refer back to a specific paragraph by number. If it would make things clearer, each claim arising from a separate transaction gets its own count, and each defense other than a simple denial gets stated separately.
A statement made anywhere in a pleading can be adopted by reference elsewhere in that pleading or in a different one, and any written instrument attached as an exhibit becomes part of the pleading for every purpose — meaning the court can look to the exhibit itself, not just what the pleading says about it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does every pleading's caption need to include?
The court's name, a title, the civil action number, and a designation showing which Rule 7(a) pleading type it is (complaint, answer, and so on).
Why does Rule 10 require numbered paragraphs?
So each claim or defense stays limited to a single set of circumstances and later pleadings can refer back to a specific paragraph by number, keeping the record clear as the case develops.
If I attach a contract to my complaint, is it treated as part of the complaint?
Yes. Under Rule 10(c), a copy of a written instrument attached as an exhibit becomes part of the pleading for all purposes.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure (W. Va. R. Civ. P. 10). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia (W. Va. Const. art. VIII, § 3). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: pleading caption requirementsnumbered paragraphsexhibits to a pleading