Also known as: affirmative pleas · affirmative defense
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A responsive pleading in equity that sets up new facts as a complete defense without denying the allegations of the bill.
Aaron Adams was sued in equity to enjoin his use of a warehouse. The bill alleged a continuing trespass. Adams filed an affirmative plea asserting the structure had been abandoned for years with no utilities or security. The court accepted the plea and dismissed the bill.
Adrian Aguilar was sued in equity to compel an accounting. The bill alleged misappropriation of funds. Aguilar filed an affirmative plea that the accounts had been settled years earlier. The court examined the plea and dismissed the bill.
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Angela Acosta sued in equity to enjoin a cigarette manufacturer from distributing certain advertising. The defendant filed an affirmative plea that federal labeling statutes barred equitable relief. The court examined the scope of federal requirements and dismissed the bill.
Andrew Avery was sued in equity to enforce an NLRB bargaining order. He filed an affirmative plea that Congress lacked power under the Commerce Clause to regulate local manufacturing. The court upheld the statute and denied the plea.
Alexis Archer sued in equity in federal court after a car accident. The defendant filed an affirmative plea that state service rules controlled instead of federal rules. The court held that federal procedural rules governed and overruled the plea.
Antonio Alvarado sued in equity for breach of an implied contract. The company filed an affirmative plea that at-will employment barred equitable relief. The court examined the employment handbook and dismissed the bill.
The defendant must plead and prove new facts showing the building or structure was abandoned at the time of entry. The plea is tested on its sufficiency as a complete defense to the bill.
No. The complainant retains the burden to prove the allegations of the bill. The defendant need only plead new facts that, if true, constitute a complete defense.
In equity the defendant must prove the facts alleged in the affirmative plea. The court decides the sufficiency of the plea on the face of the pleadings.
Yes. Lack of a writing is new matter that must be set up by affirmative plea in equity. If not pleaded it is ordinarily waived.
The matter is waived unless the court permits amendment of the plea. The complainant is not required to anticipate or disprove unpleaded affirmative matters.
…an offense, cf. Mullaney v. Wilbur , 421 U. S. 684 (1975); Sandstrom v. Montana , 442 U. S. 510 (1979), or by placing the affirmative defense label on "at least some elements" of traditional crimes, Patterson v. New York , 432 U. S. 197, 210 (1977). The prosecutor did not invoke any presumption to buttress the evidence of…