Rules of Court · Part 4 · New Jersey
R. 4:5-3 New Jersey Rules of Court, R. 4:5-3: Answer; Defenses; Form of Denials, rendered as code with every cross-reference linked
Answer; Defenses; Form of Denials
An answer shall state in short and plain terms the pleader's defenses to each claim asserted and shall admit or deny the allegations upon which the adversary relies. A physician defending against a malpractice claim who admits to treating the plaintiff must include in his or her answer the field of medicine in which he or she specialized at that time, if any, and whether his or her treatment of the plaintiff involved that specialty. A pleader who is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of an allegation shall so state and, except as otherwise provided by R. 4:64-1(c) (foreclosure actions), this shall have the effect of a denial. Denials shall fairly meet the substance of the allegations denied. A pleader who intends in good faith to deny only a part or a qualification of an allegation shall specify so much of it as is true and material and deny only the remainder. The pleader may not generally deny all the allegations but shall make the denials as specific denials of designated allegations or paragraphs.
Note: Source — R.R. 4:8-2; amended July 13, 1994 to be effective September 1, 1994; amended August 1, 2006 to be effective September 1, 2006; amended July 19, 2012 to be effective September 4, 2012.
Verbatim rule text, unmarked. Nothing here is a summary.
rule 4:5-3 "Answer; Defenses; Form of Denials" {
An answer shall state in short and plain terms the pleader's defenses to each claim asserted and shall admit or deny the allegations upon which the adversary relies. A physician defending against a malpractice claim who admits to treating the plaintiff must include in his or her answer the field of medicine in which he or she specialized at that time, if any, and whether his or her treatment of the plaintiff involved that specialty. A pleader who is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of an allegation shall so state and, except as otherwise provided by R. 4:64-1(c) (foreclosure actions), this shall have the effect of a denial. Denials shall fairly meet the substance of the allegations denied. A pleader who intends in good faith to deny only a part or a qualification of an allegation shall specify so much of it as is true and material and deny only the remainder. The pleader may not generally deny all the allegations but shall make the denials as specific denials of designated allegations or paragraphs.
Note: Source — R.R. 4:8-2; amended July 13, 1994 to be effective September 1, 1994; amended August 1, 2006 to be effective September 1, 2006; amended July 19, 2012 to be effective September 4, 2012.
}
referenced_by: 1:5-5, 5:4-3, 8:3-6
source: njcourts.gov // verbatim; changed 2025-09-29; corpus harvested 2026-09-02← R. 4:5-2 · R. 4:5-4 → · chapter 4:5 · all rules
The Rules of Court are a government edict and carry no copyright; the text above is the Judiciary’s own publication, unchanged. Structure, links and highlighting are ours and carry no legal weight. Read the rule on njcourts.gov before you rely on it; amendments take effect each September 1.