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West v. Bank of Am., N.A.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA
Sep 11, 2015
Case No. CIV-15-058-RAW (E.D. Okla. Sep. 11, 2015)

Opinion

Case No. CIV-15-058-RAW

09-11-2015

THOMAS F. WEST, and DIANA M. WEST, Plaintiffs, v. BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., Defendant.


ORDER & OPINION

Before the court is Plaintiffs' motion to strike Defendant's twenty-six affirmative defenses [Docket No. 10]. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8 provides in pertinent part that a defendant must "state in short and plain terms its defenses to each claim asserted against it," and that a defendant "may state as many separate claims and defenses as it has, regardless of consistency." Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(b)(1)(A), 8(c)(1) and 8(d)(3).

Pursuant to Rule 12(f), the court may strike defenses, but motions to strike defenses "are disfavored and infrequently granted." Vincent v. Lindsey Management Co., Inc., No. 12-CV-210-JED-PJC, 2013 WL 6732661 at *4 (N.D. Okla. Dec. 19, 2013) (citing United States v. Hardage, 116 F.R.D. 460, 463 (W.D. Okla. 1987)). As Defendant quotes and the Northern District of Illinois aptly noted, the reason for this is that "the very possibility of waiver makes it important (and certainly prudent) to plead all appropriate affirmative defenses, and "the cautious pleader is fully justified in setting up as affirmative defenses anything that might possibly fall into that category, even though that approach may lead to pleading matters as affirmative defenses that could have been set forth in simple denials. Bobbitt v. Victorian House, Inc., 532 F.Supp. 734, 736 (N.D. Ill. 1982).

To succeed in their motion, Plaintiffs would have to demonstrate that they would "be prejudiced significantly if the attacked allegations are left in the pleadings." Hardage, 116 F.R.D. at 463. Plaintiffs have not demonstrated any prejudice. Accordingly, the motion to strike affirmative defenses [Docket No. 10] is hereby DENIED.

IT IS SO ORDERED this 11th day of September, 2015.

/s/ _________

THE HONORABLE RONALD A. WHITE

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

EASTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA


Summaries of

West v. Bank of Am., N.A.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA
Sep 11, 2015
Case No. CIV-15-058-RAW (E.D. Okla. Sep. 11, 2015)
Case details for

West v. Bank of Am., N.A.

Case Details

Full title:THOMAS F. WEST, and DIANA M. WEST, Plaintiffs, v. BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.…

Court:UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF OKLAHOMA

Date published: Sep 11, 2015

Citations

Case No. CIV-15-058-RAW (E.D. Okla. Sep. 11, 2015)