At the trial stage, a party may wish to make a motion to strike to remove evidence–usually part of a witness's testimony–from the court record, with the jury instructed to disregard the evidence. This is commonly accomplished by raising an objection, which a judge can either sustain or overrule.
A motion to strike may be brought against complaints, cross-complaints, answers and demurrers. A motion to strike can be brought against an entire pleading, or any part of a pleading.
A motion to strike is a legal request made to a court to remove certain parts of the opposing party's pleadings. This can include irrelevant, redundant, or legally insufficient material from a complaint, answer, or other legal documents.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure states that "The court may strike from a pleading an insufficient defense or any redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter." Similarly, for example, the California Code of Civil Procedure provides that a motion to strike may be made to strike out any "irrelevant, ...
Steps Check if the court has blank motion forms. Some courts have "check the boxes" or "fill in the blank" motion forms. Create your caption. Title your motion. Draft the introductory paragraph to the body of the motion. Request relief. Lay out the applicable facts. Make your legal argument. Insert a signature block.
A motion to strike material from a complaint must be filed before filing an answer. FRCP 12(f). Therefore, unless otherwise ordered by the court, the motion must be filed by the defendant within 21 days after being served with a summons and complaint, or within 60 days if service of the complaint was timely waived.
12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, 'the district court must construe the complaint in a light most favorable to the plaintiff, accept all of the factual allegations as true, and determine whether the plaintiff undoubtedly can prove no set of facts in support of his claims that would entitle him to relief.
Summary. Rule 12(f) allows courts to strike redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter from pleadings. Judge Hollander's opinion in Blevins v. Piatt provides clear criteria for granting or denying a Rule 12(f) motion.