The Short Answer
A complaint is the formal legal document that kicks off a civil lawsuit against you — it's typically what's attached to those papers the sheriff hands you. It identifies the plaintiff (who is suing you), the defendant (you), the court and county where the case was filed, and exactly what the plaintiff claims you owe. In debt cases, it will spell out the account details, the amount owed, and what remedy the plaintiff is seeking — usually a money judgment plus interest and attorney's fees. You must respond to a complaint by filing an answer, or the court can enter a default judgment against you automatically.
When the sheriff shows up at your door and hands you a stack of papers with a bright yellow sheet on top, what are they actually giving you? Most likely they are giving you what is called a complaint. A complaint is the first step in initiating a lawsuit. This means that someone has filed papers with the court to begin the legal process to write some sort of wrong. Most of the complaints clients who come into our office see are ones saying they owe someone money.
So what does a complaint typically say? It will state which county the complaint has been filed in and whether it is in the District or Superior court for that county. The title of the complaint will also say who is filing the complaint, the plaintiff, and who they are filing it against, the defendant. The case number will also be stated in this section. Below that it will also state why they are filing the complaint. For example, say John Smith owes ABC Bank $10,000 that is past due on a credit card. The body of the compliant will list this, along with the specifics of when the card was applied for and the actual card number.
There will also be several statements that are numbered and they will list the terms of the complaint. These typically state who the plaintiff is, where the defendant lives, that the defendant opened an account and agreed to the term and conditions of the account and that they then have failed to pay on that account. The last paragraph will state what the plaintiff wants as a remedy or result of filing the complaint. What the plaintiff will typically say they want is a judgment for the full amount the plaintiff owes plus a certain amount of interest and attorney’s fees.
It is important that you respond to the complaint by filing an answer. If you do not respond to the complaint then you will automatically be found liable for the lawsuit. The courts will view it as you failed to respond and, therefore, you admit that you owe the money and are liable to the plaintiff. The court will then issue a default judgment saying you are fully liable for the amount owed. Be sure to read our other blog post on how to respond to a complaint with an answer. Also know that if you do have a lawsuit against you bankruptcy may be an option worth exploring more.
Key Takeaways
- A complaint is the first official document in a civil lawsuit, and receiving one from a sheriff means someone has formally started legal proceedings against you.
- The complaint identifies both parties, the court, the case number, the reason for the lawsuit, and exactly what the plaintiff wants — typically a money judgment with interest and fees.
- Failing to file a written answer to the complaint means the court can enter a default judgment against you, treating your silence as an admission that you owe the debt.
- The numbered paragraphs in the body of a complaint lay out each specific claim — such as when you opened an account, the account number, and the alleged failure to pay.
- If you've been served with a complaint for a debt you can't pay, bankruptcy may be worth exploring — filing can trigger the automatic stay, which halts most collection lawsuits.
Attorney Insight
The mistake I see most often is people stuffing those sheriff-served papers in a drawer and hoping the problem goes away — it never does. In North Carolina, once a creditor gets a default judgment because you didn't answer the complaint, they can't garnish your wages the way creditors can in most other states, but they can pursue other collection tools like bank levies or liens on real property. What people don't realize is that they had a window to respond, and missing it permanently changes their options. By the time a client walks into our office after a default judgment has already been entered, we're working with a much narrower set of solutions than we would have had if they'd come in when that complaint first arrived.
