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.
A case is dismissed with prejudice when the defect cannot be remedied because, for example, the claim has no basis in law, and it is permanently dismissed. (That does not mean that you can't bring an appeal to challenge the trial judge's decision.)
What happens next? If we filed the motion to strike in a trial court, then we will set the motion to be heard by a judge or magistrate, and be ruled upon. If we filed it in an appeals court, the appeals court will read the motion and offending document and will rule on it without hearing.
In general, an action taken with prejudice is final. For example, dismissal with prejudice forbids a party to refile the case and might occur because of misconduct on the part of the party that filed the claim or criminal complaint or as the result of an out-of-court agreement or settlement.
C.C.P. § 436 allows for a motion to strike “any irrelevant, false, or improper matter asserted in any pleading” or portion of a pleading “not drawn of filed in conformity with the laws of this state.” A motion to strike is proper “when a substantive defect is clear from the face of a complaint.” (PH II, Inc.
When a court dismisses an action, they can either do so “with prejudice” or “without prejudice.” Dismissal with prejudice means that the plaintiff cannot refile the same claim again in that court.
A case is dismissed without prejudice if 1) it is not resolved on the merits but for some reason is technically deficient as filed and the judge so rules, or, 2) the plaintiff moves for a voluntary dismissal for some reason.
28 U.S.C. § 1291. So to be appealable, dismissals without prejudice must produce a final decision. And a final decision is normally one that “ends the litigation on the merits and leaves nothing for the court to do but execute the judgment.” 6.