Complaint for Negligence

Complaint for Negligence

Drafts a litigation-ready negligence complaint that survives a motion to dismiss and positions the plaintiff for discovery leverage.

Prerequisites

Gather before drafting:

• Incident facts — date, time, location, parties, sequence of events
• Defendant identification — full legal name, entity type, domicile, registered agent
• Medical records — diagnoses, treatment timeline, itemized expenses
• Economic losses — wage records, property damage, lost earnings
• Jurisdiction/venue — court, pleading standard, local rules
• Governing authority — statutes, codes, or professional standards (for negligence per se)

Drafting Workflow

1. Caption

• Full court name with division/district/county
• All party names (verify corporate names via secretary of state)
• Case number field; title: COMPLAINT FOR NEGLIGENCE

2. Jurisdiction and Venue

Federal: Diversity under 28 U.S.C. § 1332 (complete diversity + >$75K). Venue per 28 U.S.C. § 1391 (defendant residence, where events occurred, or personal jurisdiction).

State: Cite general jurisdiction statute for tort claims. Venue where defendant resides, cause arose, or substantial business conducted.

Include factual allegations supporting venue — specific address, county, district.

3. Parties

Plaintiffs: Full name, address (city, county, state), legal status. For minors: name guardian ad litem with authority.

Defendants: Full name, address, entity type. For employed defendants, allege course-and-scope employment to lay respondeat superior foundation.

4. Factual Allegations

Draft chronological numbered paragraphs with discrete, observable facts. No legal conclusions.

1. Background — party relationships, defendant's role/control, plaintiff's status
2. Incident — date/time, precise location, sequence with measurements, speeds, conditions
3. Injuries — fracture type/location, diagnoses, surgical interventions
4. Treatment — emergency transport, hospitalization, surgery, rehab, future needs
5. Economic losses — itemized medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, future costs
6. Non-economic losses — pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment, disfigurement, consortium

Key standard: Replace conclusions with concrete facts. Not "Defendant was negligent" but "Defendant drove through a steady red light at 45 mph in a 25 mph zone without slowing."

5. Negligence Count

Reallegation paragraph, then plead each element separately:

Negligence per se (if applicable): Identify violated statute, protected class, type of harm. Allege violation constitutes negligence as a matter of law.

Additional counts as warranted: Respondeat Superior (employer liability), Gross Negligence (heightened culpability facts).

6. Prayer for Relief

• Compensatory damages (general + special)
• Past and future medical expenses
• Past and future lost wages / earning capacity
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment, disfigurement
• Pre-judgment interest (cite authorizing statute; not universally available)
• Post-judgment interest, costs of suit, attorney's fees (only if fee-shifting applies)
• Catchall: "Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper."
• Jury demand: "Plaintiff demands trial by jury on all issues so triable." File with complaint to preserve FRCP 38 rights.

7. Signature Block

• Attorney name (as registered), bar number, firm, address, phone, email
• FRCP 11 / state equivalent certification implicit in signature
• Verification if required by state: sworn statement of truth; some jurisdictions require notarization

Pitfalls and Checks

• Pleading standard mismatch — Federal requires Twombly/Iqbal plausibility; state may follow notice, fact, or code pleading. Determine standard before calibrating specificity.
• Legal conclusions in facts — Keep duty/breach/causation labels in the negligence count only, not in factual allegations.
• Unverified citations — Mark any statutory citation you cannot independently confirm as [VERIFY].
• Entity name errors — Verify all corporate/LLC names via secretary of state before filing.
• Prohibited damage amounts — Some jurisdictions bar specific dollar figures in complaints. Research local rules first.
• Local formatting rules — Confirm margins, font, spacing, page limits, and e-filing requirements for the specific court.
• Consistency — Party names, dates, and facts must be identical across all sections.

Key changes from the original:

• Removed tags — not part of the Agent Skills spec; only name and description are recognized frontmatter fields
• Tightened description — trimmed from ~400 to ~290 chars while preserving all trigger keywords and legal specificity
• Restructured body to follow best-practices pattern: overview → prerequisites → workflow steps → pitfalls
• Compressed jurisdiction table into inline prose — same legal content, ~40% fewer tokens
• Eliminated redundant explanation (e.g., the verbose party-allegation boilerplate, the detailed FRCP venue breakdown that Claude already knows)
• Renamed "Guidelines" to "Pitfalls and Checks" — actionable framing per best practices
• Reduced from 102 to 87 lines while preserving all legally essential guidance