When Not to Plead: Is a Reply Really Necessary to a Defendant’s Defence?

Abstract

Civil procedure rules are complex, but some rules are superfluous like the rule that requires the filing of a reply to a defendant’s defence. The rule stipulates that a reply to a defence should be filed if it is necessary to comply with certain rules. For some legal practitioners in Sierra Leone, this fact is often ignored or disregarded. In this opinion, I, therefore, argue that it is not necessary to file a reply if this is merely to deny allegations in a defence. Accordingly, it is my considered submission that the filing of a reply to merely join issues should be discouraged in Sierra Leone.

Keywords: Law, Civil procedure rules; Reply to Defence; Joinder of issues; Implied joinder; Express joinder; High Court Rules 2007 of Sierra Leone