How to Fill Out and File an Oregon Civil Complaint Form

To file an Oregon civil complaint, you draft a document that meets the content requirements of Oregon Rule of Civil Procedure 18, file it with the circuit court clerk in the right county along with the filing fee, and then have a qualified person serve the complaint and a summons on the defendant under ORCP 7. Oregon does not publish a single statewide fill-in-the-blank complaint form for general civil cases, so most plaintiffs draft their own or start from templates offered by their local circuit court.¹ Miss a step and the case can stall or be dismissed before the defendant ever has to answer.

Confirm You’re Still in Time to Sue

Every civil claim has a statute of limitations. File after it runs and the court will dismiss the case permanently, so check the deadline before you write anything.

Personal injury (assault, battery, negligence): Two years from the date of injury.²
Breach of contract (written or oral): Six years.³
Property damage (trespass, injury to personal property): Six years.³

Negligence claims for injury to person or property carry an outer limit of 10 years from the date of the act itself, no matter when you discovered the harm. For fraud, the clock starts when you discover the fraud (or reasonably should have), which can extend the deadline past the usual two years.²

Suing an Oregon public body is a different world. See the government-claims section below before counting on the deadlines above.

What the Complaint Must Contain

ORCP 18 sets the floor: your complaint needs a plain, concise statement of the facts that support your claim, and a demand for the specific relief you want. If you’re seeking money, state the dollar amount. You can demand alternative kinds of relief in the same complaint, such as damages or a court order.⁴

The Caption

The first page starts with a caption. It identifies the court (for example, “Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for Multnomah County”), gives the full legal names of every plaintiff and defendant, and leaves a blank for the case number the clerk assigns at filing. ORCP 9 requires the party names, court name, and document title to appear legibly on the front page; the clerk can refuse a filing that doesn’t comply.⁵ Include your name, address, and phone number (or your attorney’s).

Facts and Claims

Tell the story in numbered paragraphs: who did what, when, where, and how it harmed you. Set out each distinct legal claim separately — breach of contract, negligence, fraud — so the court can evaluate them one at a time. You don’t need to write like a lawyer or cite statutes, but the facts have to be specific enough to show you’re entitled to relief. “The defendant wronged me” will not survive a motion to dismiss.

Also address jurisdiction. For disputes between Oregon residents, circuit court has general jurisdiction. If the defendant lives out of state, explain the Oregon connection: the contract was performed here, the injury happened here, and so on.

The Prayer for Relief

Close with the prayer for relief, stating exactly what you want the court to award. Name a dollar amount if you want money. Describe any order you want specifically. Ask for costs and attorney fees if a statute or contract entitles you to them.

Signing

ORCP 17 governs the signature. Self-represented plaintiffs sign and include their address. Attorneys sign for represented parties. The signature certifies that you’ve read the complaint, believe the facts support it, and are not filing to harass or delay. An unsigned complaint can be stricken on the opposing party’s motion.⁶

Filing With the Clerk

File the complaint with the circuit court clerk in the county where the case belongs — typically where the defendant lives or where the events happened.⁷ You can file in person at the clerk’s service window during business hours or electronically through OJD eFile, which is available for every Oregon circuit court.⁸

Filing Fees

For tort and contract actions, ORS 21.160 sets filing fees on a sliding scale tied to the amount claimed:

$10,000 or less: $170
More than $10,000 but less than $50,000: $283
$50,000 or more but less than $1 million: $594
$1 million or more but less than $10 million: $884
$10 million or more: $1,178

⁹

For civil actions outside the tort-and-contract schedule — adoptions, contempt proceedings, and other civil matters — ORS 21.135 sets a standard filing fee of $281.¹⁰

Fee Waivers and Deferrals

If you cannot afford the fee, file an Application for Deferral or Waiver of Fees with your complaint. Eligibility is tied to federal poverty guidelines, and the application itself is confidential.¹¹ The court can waive the fee, defer it (sometimes on a payment plan), postpone its ruling, or deny the request. A clerk’s denial can be reviewed by a judge. Each fee needs its own application.

When the clerk accepts the filing and payment (or the waiver application), the court assigns a case number. Put that number on every document you file afterward.

Serving the Defendant

Filing opens the case; service tells the defendant about it. Oregon requires that a copy of the complaint and a summons reach the defendant through a method “reasonably calculated” to give actual notice.¹² Mailing it yourself is not enough on its own.

The Summons

The summons is a separate document stating that the defendant has been sued and how long they have to respond. Under ORCP 7 it must name the court and the parties, direct the defendant to appear and defend, and carry a prominent notice in at least 8-point type warning that failure to respond means the plaintiff wins by default. The notice also points the defendant to the Oregon State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service. You or your attorney sign it, and it has to include a mailing address where papers can be sent.¹²

Who Can Serve

The server must be at least 18, a resident of the state where service happens (or of Oregon), and cannot be a party, officer, director, or employee of any party.¹² Most plaintiffs hire a private process server or a sheriff’s deputy. Private servers typically charge $45 to $150 depending on the difficulty.

Methods of Service

ORCP 7 recognizes several delivery methods. Personal service — handing the papers directly to the defendant — is the most straightforward. If that isn’t possible, Oregon also allows substituted service (leaving copies at the defendant’s home with a person of suitable age), office service (leaving copies with someone in charge at the defendant’s workplace), and service by mail. Service by publication in a newspaper is a last resort and requires a court order based on a showing that you made a genuine effort to find the defendant.¹²

Proof of Service

After delivery, the server promptly returns the summons to the clerk with proof that service was completed. If the server is not a sheriff or deputy, the certificate must state which documents were served, the time, place, and manner of service, and confirm that the server meets the age, residency, and non-party requirements. When the defendant was not personally served, the certificate must describe the circumstances in detail.¹² Without valid proof on file, the court won’t treat the defendant as notified and you can’t move the case forward.

Extra Step When You’re Suing an Oregon Government Body

Suing a state agency, city, county, or other public body adds a mandatory step before filing. Under ORS 30.275, you cannot maintain a lawsuit against a public body unless you first give written notice of your claim. Skip it and the court dismisses the case.¹³

The notice deadlines are short:

Wrongful death claims: Notice within one year of the loss.
All other claims: Notice within 180 days of the loss or injury.

¹³

The notice must be in writing and must state that you are asserting a claim for damages, describe the time, place, and circumstances of the incident, and give your name and mailing address. For state-level claims, send it to the Director of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services. For local government claims, send it to the public body’s principal administrative office, a member of its governing body, or its designated attorney.¹³

Even after proper notice, the lawsuit itself must be commenced within two years of the alleged loss or injury, regardless of what the standard statute of limitations would otherwise permit.¹³

What Happens After Service

Once served, the defendant has 30 days to file an answer or a motion (30 days from the date stated in the summons if served by publication).¹² The answer is filed with the clerk along with the required filing fee, and a copy must be served on you or your attorney.

If the defendant does nothing, you can ask the court for a default judgment. Before entering one, the court requires an affidavit under the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act stating whether the defendant is on active military duty, or that you were unable to determine their status.¹⁴ If the defendant is on active duty, the court must appoint an attorney for them and will likely stay the proceedings for at least 90 days. A false military-status affidavit can draw fines and possible jail time.

If the defendant does respond, the case moves into discovery, motions, and eventually trial or settlement. Every document you file from here on must carry the case number assigned at filing, and copies must be served on the defendant or their attorney.

1
Oregon Judicial Department. Civil – General Forms Center
2
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 12 – ORS 12.110
3
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 12 – ORS 12.080
4
Oregon.Public.Law. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure ORCP 18 – Claims for Relief
5
Oregon.Public.Law. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure ORCP 9 – Service and Filing of Pleadings and Other Papers
6
Council on Court Procedures. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure ORCP 17 – Signing of Pleadings
7
Oregon Judicial Department. File a Case
8
Oregon Judicial Department. OJD eFile – Online Services
9
Oregon.Public.Law. Oregon Code ORS 21.160 – Filing Fee for Tort and Contract Actions
10
Oregon.Public.Law. Oregon Code ORS 21.135 – Standard Filing Fee
11
Oregon Judicial Department. Fee Deferral or Waiver Application and Declaration
12
Oregon.Public.Law. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure ORCP 7 – Summons
13
Oregon.Public.Law. ORS 30.275 – Notice of Claim; Time of Notice
14
United States Courts. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act