Aren't they also supposed to send me their memorandum of points and authorities? Also, what would be considered a reasonable time frame to review the complaint before agreeing or disagreeing to stipulate?
No, if the plaintiffs are asking you for a stipulation for leave to file the amended complaint, they would not have prepared the memorandum of points and authorites, nor would they need to if you agree to enter into the stipulation.
Nevertheless, the proposed amended complaint ought to indicate what is being added and what is being taken out. You are entitled to know this, and this is also a requirement under the California Rules of Court (CRC) should plaintiffs need to file a motion for leave to amend.
Specifically, CRC Rule 3.1324 (a) provides as follows:
"A motion to amend a pleading before trial must:
(1) Include a copy of the proposed amendment or amended pleading, which must be serially numbered to differentiate it from previous pleadings or amendments;
(2) State what allegations in the previous pleading are proposed to be deleted, if any, and where, by page, paragraph, and line number, the deleted allegations are located; and
(3) State what allegations are proposed to be added to the previous pleading, if any, and where, by page, paragraph, and line number, the additional allegations are located."
The reasonable amount of time for you to review the amended complaint will depend upon the extent of the changes, as well as whether the plaintiffs provided you with a "redlined" version so that you can easily discern the additions and deletions. If the plaintiffs have not made it easy for you, then you should ask for more time to decide. If the changes are merely clerical in nature, then you really don't need more than a couple of days to get back to them.
Representing yourself is a bad idea. As you are learning, the Rules of Civil Procedure are not especially "user-friendly." Your lack of familiarity is likely to get you in more trouble than you realize. If it's important enough to litigate, you need to hire an attorney.
The plaintiff is trying to avoid the time and expense to draft the motion and P&As which is why they sent you just the proposed amended complaint. If you agree and sign a stip, the plaintiff will ask the judge to grant leave to file the amended complaint without a hearing. Reasonable time? Ask plaintiff's counsel.
P.S. I agree with the previous response - if this is case is worth litigating, it is worth hiring a lawyer - at least retained for on-going consultation.
Richard A. Rodgers, Esq. (805) 230-2525
[email protected]
www.sdresq.com
You should heed the advice of the earlier posted answers. If a case has reached the point where pleadings are being amended, you should probably be consulting with an attorney.
There is no requirement for you to see the memorandum of points and authorities before a motion is filed.
What is a reasonable time to respond depends upon the nature of the amendment.
If the case is worth fighting over, you should spend a few dollars to consult with an attorney.
Jeff
Jeff
