• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Courtroom5

Be Your Own Lawyer

  • How It Works
  • Legal Tips
    • Access To Justice
    • Affirmative Defenses
    • Discovery
    • Dismissal
    • Legal Research
    • Litigation Strategy
    • Summary Judgment
  • Sign Up
  • Sign In

August 17, 2019 By Debra Slone 2 Comments

When Should You Use Motions To Quash and Strike?

Separately, the terms crash and burn don’t mean quite the same thing, but they’re close. The goal is to make something fail. Together, they mean to make something fail in spectacular fashion. Quash and strike? They’re not quite the same either, but they’re close.

In litigation, the goal of motions to quash and strike is to make something fail. Unlike crash and burn, they’re not spectacular together. Moving for one at a time will do. The challenge is to know when to move for which.

Why distinguish between the motion to quash and motion to strike?

The motion to quash and the motion to strike are so similar that people even in the legal profession exchange one for the other. Yet, the legal profession insists they are different. They are, but as a pro se litigant, you can get away with calling a motion to strike a motion to quash and vice versa. In fact, statutes allow you to address some issues with either a motion to quash or a motion to strike.

Yet, there are good reasons for knowing the difference between the two. First, the more you know about them the more likely you are to use them. Second, not distinguishing one motion from another might lead to willy nilly throwing in any motion at any time without regard to why that motion works. I’ve seen pro se litigants use a motion to quash against a motion for summary judgment, or a motion to strike in place of a motion to dismiss without following up with dismissal proceedings. Do something like that, and you lose not just your credibility.

The ability to quash or strike a pleading, motion, testimony, subpoena, etc, is so powerful that the two motions are well worth learning about. They are also worth distinguishing if you plan to use them. So let’s look closely at them.

Differences between the two motions

A motion to strike requests that a judge eliminate a document, parts of a pleading, or an entire cause of action because of an insufficiency. The motion can be oral or written. In order to dispose of an entire claim with a motion to strike, however, the judge must do more than simply grant the motion. She or he must follow up by entering a dismissal, summary judgment, or partial summary judgment.

Most times, the judge will simply strike (eliminate) a document or testimony from being used in a case. In a jury trial, if a judge strikes certain parts of a testimony, the jury is required to ignore all the parts that were stricken.

While the motion to strike asks the court to eliminate a document or parts of a document from a current filing, a motion to quash asks the court to make void, nullify or set aside a decision a court has already made. It’s like a before and after picture. The motion to Quash seeks to void a previous ruling, while the motion to strike seeks to eliminate a current filing or something from the current filing.

Also unlike the motion to strike, motions to quash are appropriate when a court has made a mistake or a court clerk’s office has issued a document, such as a subpoena, improperly. The people making a “mistake” that leads to a motion to strike are usually parties in the case.

Sample uses of motions to quash and strike

When can you use motions to quash and strike? You can use them in multiple situations. Consider them the right hook just before the knockout punch. The instances below are examples of situations where a motion to quash or strike might be appropriate.

  • A complaint is filed in the wrong jurisdiction. (Motion to Quash)
  • An attorney makes a last minute bevy of discovery requests, including a notice of an expert witness, 24 hours before a pre-trial conference. (Motion to Strike)
  • An attorney submits an affidavit from a company vice president  who has no knowledge of company business practices during the relevant times in the complaint. (Motion to Strike)
  • A foreclosure case is filed without the proper verification or preconditions. (Motion to Quash)
  • A summons arrives without the Defendant’s name. (Motion to Quash)
  • Wording in one count of an amended complaint is prejudicial. (Motion to Strike)
  • A complaint is filed with falsehoods or is frivolous. (Motion to Strike)
  • A subpoena for deposition did not allow reasonable notice. (Motion to Quash)
  • At trial, a witness’ answers are in violation of the rules of evidence. (Motion to Strike)

There are numerous ways to put the stops on a court proceeding, including motions to dismiss, motions for summary judgment, objections, motions in limine, and motions to suppress. The motion to quash and the motion to strike though are two of the most useful yet underused tools by pro se litigants. Learn the when, how, and why of using these two motions and up your litigation game.

—–
Pssst! Hey, you there, struggling to win your case. Isn’t it time you gave Courtroom5 a spin? We publish articles like this to help you level the playing field, but it’s sometimes too late to save your case. Stop trying to catch up. Get ahead of the game and start driving your case to the judgment you deserve. See how it works today!

More Like This:

  • Test Your Readiness For CourtTest Your Readiness For Court
  • If You're A Pro Se Plaintiff, This Manual Is For YouIf You're A Pro Se Plaintiff, This Manual Is For You
  • Best Blog Posts For Pro Se Litigants — The 2019 EditionBest Blog Posts For Pro Se Litigants — The 2019 Edition
  • 11 Things To Consider When You Need To Sue11 Things To Consider When You Need To Sue
  • Did You Come To Appease Or To Conquer? The 5 Types Of Pro Se LitigantsDid You Come To Appease Or To Conquer? The 5 Types…
  • How To Write A Motion--A Guide And Sample Motions For Pro Se LitigantsHow To Write A Motion--A Guide And Sample Motions…
  • Negotiating A Settlement You Can Live WithNegotiating A Settlement You Can Live With
  • What Can I File At Each Stage Of Litigation?What Can I File At Each Stage Of Litigation?

Tagged With: motion to quash, motion to strike

About Debra Slone

Debra Slone is a co-founder at Courtroom5. Through legal sorcery, she can find case law to support any position she wants to take in court.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Gregory M Smith says

    December 25, 2019 at 3:58 pm

    I am engaged in a very bitter foreclosure suit, with chase bank. the initial complaint was filed by me, the lawyers for chase filed an extension as I was about to file an ex parte motion, lis pendens, ext…well the extension succeded in causing trauma. the defense lawyer continued and filed a demurrer, with me being notified, as well as having a telephonic hearing. no service was made nor any attempt to notify me. The judge approved it with no ability for me to have any contact. obviously this is not supposed to happen. on top of that, no court documents or legal data was received by me because we have no mail service here, just PO boxes, and my po box was not on the complaint. So I refiled the case on dec 17, `on dec. 19 there was a eviction, I was not there, nor was I aware of any legal action. the case refiled should immediately stop any eviction as it involves title of the property. I would like to file a motion to quash for failure to serve summons. the clerks file shows a secondary service for the complaint. dates and time needed to get a default are inconsistent, as with the foreclosure. this is a travesty that is unconscionable. This in Lassen county. ????

    Reply
  2. Montgomery Doris says

    May 27, 2020 at 7:43 pm

    Oh, I had been researching the topic for some time, and this informative article helped me a lot.

    I’m so delighted to get exactly what I was searching for in this report.
    I have previously read this post here https://ideenkicker.ch/ministry-of-broadcast/, however, your essay is deeper
    regarding the understanding of the subject field. Thankyou so much with
    this particular soil research!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Get Our Free 5-Day Course to Your Inbox

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

We hate spam too. We'll never share your email.

Popular Articles

  • 31 affirmative defenses 31 Affirmative Defenses And How To Assert Them
  • biggest mistakes pro se litigants make 6 Of The Biggest Mistakes Pro Se Litigants Make
  • How to Write a Motion How To Write A Motion--A Guide And Sample Motions For Pro Se Litigants

Popular Tags

access to justice affirmative defenses answer appeal bias Brian Vukadinovich case analysis Case Manager civil legal aid complaint constitution court costs court reporter Courtroom5 criminal discovery elements of a claim eviction evidence hearing how to win in court I Am Not A Lawyer judicial bias jurisdiction Lawyers We Love legal analysis legal argument Legal Bits legal research litigation litigation strategy motion for summary judgment motion to dismiss podcast pro se litigants pro se litigation Richard Zorza rules of civil procedure self-representation self represented litigant settlement Sonja Ebron summary judgment trial unbundled legal services
Follow @Courtroom5Legal
Courtroom5
Courtroom5 @Courtroom5Legal
3 days ago
Thanks to @WRAL for naming Courtroom5 a finalist in this year’s Voters Choice Award for most innovative local startup. #WRALVCAs https://t.co/Vde2rnxfQQ
View on Twitter
0
0
Courtroom5
Courtroom5 @Courtroom5Legal
4 days ago
Yes, still true. #accesstojustice https://t.co/D0PgmjNwDr
View on Twitter
Open Hands Legal Svc @openhandslegal
https://t.co/X4xw9pYT1w
1
2
Courtroom5
Courtroom5 @Courtroom5Legal
3 weeks ago
New at Courtroom5–> What Legal Expenses Can Pro Se Litigants Recover? #accesstojustice https://t.co/oVh5AoGozG https://t.co/HKkjB2OnT4
View on Twitter
0
0
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us

© 2021 Courtroom5 | A Techstars Company · My Account
No legal advice offered · No substitute for a lawyer

We use cookies to ensure the best experience on our website. If you continue to browse Courtroom5, we assume this is okay for you.OK