How to fill out a Louisiana pleading, from caption to signature.

The caption. Who, where, and docket number.

The caption sits at the top of every pleading. It tells the clerk where to file the paper, which judge or hearing officer has it, and who the parties are. In Louisiana, the standard caption has four pieces: the party names (petitioner versus defendant), the court, the docket number and division, and the parish and state.

Here is a correctly formatted caption for a 102 divorce in East Baton Rouge Parish. The left side names the parties. The right side names the court. The row of asterisks is a visual separator between caption and body, required by local practice in most Louisiana district courts.

Common caption mistakes

• Wrong parish. You can only file where venue is proper. For divorce, that is your domicile, your spouse's domicile, or the last matrimonial domicile. For custody, it is the child's "home state" under the UCCJEA. For eviction, it is the parish where the property sits. For a succession, it is the parish of the decedent's domicile at death.
• Wrong court. City Courts handle civil claims up to their jurisdictional cap (usually $35,000; $50,000 in some) and most eviction and small-claims matters. Justice of the Peace Courts handle civil claims up to $5,000 and small evictions. District Courts handle everything else, including divorce, custody, successions, and interdictions. If you file in the wrong court, the case gets dismissed or transferred.
• Filling in the docket number. Do not. The clerk writes it on the paper when you file. If you put a number in there, the clerk will scratch it out and renumber, which looks careless.
• Capitalizing names inconsistently. Louisiana courts use ALL CAPS for party names in the caption. Keep it consistent on every pleading in the case, or risk clerks and judges thinking you are two different plaintiffs.

The verification. Swearing the pleading is true.

Many Louisiana pleadings require a verification: a sworn statement, signed before a notary, that the facts in the pleading are true. Divorce petitions, protective order petitions, successions, and interdictions all require verification. Rules for contempt and most motions do not. When in doubt, verify; a verified pleading is never thrown out for being over-sworn.

A verification is a short, standalone page attached to the end of your pleading. It has its own caption, the sworn statement, your signature, and the notary's jurat. Here is the template:

What the notary actually does

The notary does three things, and only three things: (1) confirms you are who you say you are, usually by looking at your driver license or passport; (2) watches you sign; and (3) signs and seals the document to confirm (1) and (2) happened in the notary's presence. The notary does not read the document, approve its contents, or vouch for the truth of what it says. That part is on you.

There are two kinds of notary acts you will see in Louisiana practice: a jurat and an acknowledgment. A jurat is for sworn statements ("I swear this is true"). An acknowledgment is for signed documents that do not need to be sworn ("I confirm this is my signature"). Verifications use a jurat. Powers of attorney, cash sales, and donations use an acknowledgment. Louisiana notaries can do both; the form of the notary block tells you which one is which.

See the Notary Primer for where to find a notary, what notarization costs in Louisiana, and the special rules for Louisiana civil-law notaries (who are a different and more powerful kind of notary than almost any other state has).

The signature block and service directive.

Every pleading closes with a signature block identifying who filed it, and a service directive telling the clerk and sheriff how to serve it on the other side. In Louisiana, a self-represented person signs as "Pro Se" or "Self-Represented." A lawyer signs with name, bar roll number, firm, address, phone, and email. Both must include a mailing address because that is where the court sends notices of hearings, judgments, and anything else the clerk mails.

Service options at the end of a Louisiana pleading

• Personal service by sheriff: The sheriff hands the paper to the defendant. Required for contempt rules exposing the defendant to jail. La. C.C.P. art. 1232.
• Domiciliary service by sheriff: The sheriff leaves the paper with any adult who lives at the defendant's home. Enough for most civil cases. La. C.C.P. art. 1234.
• Long-arm service: For defendants outside Louisiana. The petitioner mails a certified copy of the petition and a Louisiana citation by certified or restricted mail, keeps the return receipt, and files an Affidavit of Long-Arm Service. See the form Affidavit of Long-Arm Service. La. R.S. 13:3201 et seq.
• Service by curator ad hoc: If the defendant cannot be found despite due diligence. The court appoints an attorney to receive service and attempt notification on the defendant's behalf. Requires a Motion to Appoint Curator. La. C.C.P. art. 5091.
• Waiver of service: If the defendant agrees to accept service, the defendant signs a waiver before a notary. This is the fastest path. See the Acceptance of Service and Waiver forms in the Service & Procedure section.

The proposed order. The paper the judge actually signs.

When your pleading asks the court to do something (set a hearing, issue a TRO, appoint a curator, grant a divorce, order expungement), you must attach a proposed order: a separate page the judge signs if the court grants your request. On the BayouJustice site, forms that need an order have a green "Proposed Order" button next to the download button.

A proposed order has the same caption as the pleading, a title (usually "ORDER," "RULE TO SHOW CAUSE," or "JUDGMENT"), the words the judge is signing (ordering, decreeing, directing), signature lines for the judge and date, and sometimes service directives for the clerk.

Rule of thumb

If you are filing a motion or rule, there is almost always a corresponding order. If you only file the motion and not the order, your motion sits in the clerk's office with nothing for the judge to sign. The case does not move until the order is in the record.

The certificate of service.

After the initial petition is served by the sheriff, most follow-up filings (motions, oppositions, discovery, memoranda) are served by the filer directly on the other party or the other party's counsel. The certificate of service is a short block at the end of the filing that says you sent a copy to the other side, how you sent it, and when.

Attachments, exhibits, and the civil case cover sheet.

Attachments and exhibits are the documents you want the court to see along with your pleading. Common attachments include: a certified copy of a marriage certificate for a divorce; a copy of the lease for an eviction; a copy of a protective order for a Rule for Contempt; a certified copy of a death certificate for a succession; pay stubs for an IFP affidavit.

Each attachment should be labeled as an exhibit ("Exhibit A," "Exhibit B," etc.) with the exhibit letter in the top right corner. If the exhibit is referenced in the body of the pleading, the body should say "attached as Exhibit A" so the clerk and the judge can find it.

The Civil Case Cover Sheet (CCCS)

Every Louisiana district court civil filing requires a Civil Case Cover Sheet. The CCCS is a one-page form that identifies the case type (divorce, succession, contract, tort, etc.), the amount in controversy, whether there are related cases, and whether a jury is demanded. The clerk uses the CCCS to route the case to the right division and to pull statistical data for the Louisiana Supreme Court. Many parishes have local versions; call the clerk if you cannot find one on their website.

The In Forma Pauperis affidavit

If you cannot afford the filing fee, you file an In Forma Pauperis (IFP) affidavit with your petition. The IFP asks the court to let you file without paying up front. You will almost certainly still owe the costs at the end of the case, but the court will not stop your case from moving forward because of inability to pay. Fill out the IFP honestly. If the court finds you misrepresented your financial situation, it can dismiss the case and sanction you. See the IFP form.

Filing. The last step before the case starts.

Once everything is signed, notarized where required, and stapled or clipped together in packet order, you take it to the clerk of court for the parish where you have venue. Most parishes also accept e-filing through the Louisiana Clerks of Court's statewide portal. Call ahead if you have never filed in that parish.

What to bring to the clerk

• The original pleading, signed in blue ink by you (and notarized where required).
• The proposed order, if any, signed in blue ink by you where there is a space for your signature, with blanks left for the judge.
• The verification page, signed and notarized.
• All exhibits, labeled and attached.
• The Civil Case Cover Sheet.
• The IFP affidavit, if you are seeking a fee waiver.
• At least two copies of everything (one for your records, one for the sheriff's service packet). Divorce and succession filings often require three.
• The filing fee, if applicable, or the IFP.
• A photo ID.

What the clerk does when you file

1. Reviews the pleading for a caption and verification (does not review the merits).
2. Assigns a docket number and a division (A, B, C, D, or E) and stamps the number on your originals and copies.
3. Takes the filing fee or holds the IFP for the judge.
4. Routes the proposed order to the judge's chambers for signature. In some parishes this takes a day; in others, a week.
5. If service by sheriff is requested, the clerk prepares the service packet and sends it to the sheriff's office.
6. Hands you back the stamped copy.

Keep the stamped copy. It is your proof the case was filed. Scan it to your email. Put it in a folder labeled with the docket number. You will need the docket number every time you call the clerk or file something new in the same case.

After you file. What happens next, and your deadlines.

The clock starts the moment you file

For most Louisiana civil cases, the defendant has fifteen days from the date of service to file an answer, or twenty days if served out of state. If the defendant does not answer in time, you can move for a preliminary default. If the defendant does answer, the case moves to discovery, pretrial conferences, and eventually trial or settlement. Each of those steps has its own forms and deadlines.

Watch for the sheriff's return

The sheriff's return is the paper that comes back after service. It tells the court whether the defendant was served, when, where, and how. The return is filed in the record, usually within a week of service. You can call the clerk and ask whether the return has come in. If service was "due and diligent" (meaning the sheriff could not find the defendant), you must try again or move to appoint a curator ad hoc.

Mark your calendar

• Fifteen days from service for the defendant's answer in most civil cases. La. C.C.P. art. 1001.
• Twenty-one days from service for a Louisiana Protection from Abuse hearing. La. R.S. 46:2135(F).
• Three days from service for an eviction hearing. La. C.C.P. art. 4732.
• Ten days from the signed judgment to file a motion for a new trial. La. C.C.P. art. 1974.
• Thirty days from the judgment or notice of judgment for a suspensive appeal; sixty days for a devolutive appeal. La. C.C.P. arts. 2123 and 2087.

Keep a case file

Buy a folder. Label it with the parish, docket number, and division. Keep in it: the stamped-copy of every pleading you filed, every pleading the other side filed and served on you, every court-signed order, every notice of hearing, and every receipt. If the clerk tells you something on the phone, write down the date and the clerk's name. You cannot run a case out of memory.

Common mistakes to avoid.

1. Filing in the wrong parish. If venue is wrong, the court transfers or dismisses. For divorce it is domicile or last matrimonial domicile. For custody it is the child's home state. For eviction it is where the property sits. For succession it is where the decedent died domiciled.
2. Not signing in blue ink. Many clerks require the signature on the original to be in blue ink so that originals and copies are distinguishable. Black is sometimes accepted; blue is never refused.
3. Signing the verification before the notary. You sign the verification in front of the notary. If you sign at home and bring it to the notary, a careful notary will refuse to notarize it.
4. Forgetting the proposed order. A motion with no proposed order gives the judge nothing to sign. The clerk will file it, but nothing moves.
5. Not making copies. You keep one. The sheriff gets one for service. Both have to be identical to the original. Make copies before you go to the clerk.
6. Missing the ten-day new-trial deadline. If you get a bad judgment, you have ten days to file for a new trial. Miss that and your only option is an appeal, which is much harder.
7. Serving by mail when the sheriff was required. For the initial petition, the sheriff must serve (or you must do waiver, long-arm, or curator). Mail only works for follow-up filings.
8. Not calling the clerk ahead. Local rules vary parish by parish. Mediation requirements, parent-education certifications, exhibit tags, service copies, extra cover sheets. Call before you file in a new parish. "What do I need to bring with this?" is the magic question.
9. Giving up at "due and diligent." If the sheriff cannot find the defendant, you have options: try a work address, try a long-arm, or move for a curator ad hoc. The case is not over.
10. Forgetting the attorney-client lines. Reading BayouJustice does not make us your lawyer, and filling out a form does not make it legally correct for your situation. If anything about your case is high-stakes (jail, children, your home, serious money), get a lawyer before filing.