Short answer. Yes. Section 7 of Rule 8 requires that when an action or defense is based on a written instrument or document, its substance must be set forth in the pleading, and the original or a copy must be attached as an exhibit, deemed part of the pleading.
What the law says
Whenever an action or defense is based upon a written instrument or document, the substance of such instrument or document shall be set forth in the pleading, and the original or a copy thereof shall be attached to the pleading as an exhibit, which shall be deemed to be a part of the pleading.
Rule 8, Section 7 — Action or defense based on document. Read the full provision →
When this rule applies
Section 7 applies specifically to situations where an action or defense is based upon a written instrument or document — such as a contract, promissory note, or deed. This is what the Rules elsewhere call an 'actionable document.' Not every reference to a document in a pleading triggers this section; it is specifically for documents that form the actual basis of the claim or defense being asserted.
Two requirements: substance in the pleading, and the actual document attached
The section imposes a two-part obligation. First, the substance of such instrument or document shall be set forth in the pleading — meaning the pleading itself must describe the document's material content, not just reference it by name. Second, the original or a copy thereof shall be attached to the pleading as an exhibit, giving the court and the opposing party the actual document to examine alongside the pleading's characterization of it.
The exhibit becomes part of the pleading
Section 7 specifies that the attached exhibit shall be deemed to be a part of the pleading. This has real consequences: because the actionable document is treated as part of the pleading itself, it directly affects how the opposing party must respond — a party's ability to specifically deny genuineness or due execution of an actionable document, addressed elsewhere in Rule 8, depends on this document having been properly attached under Section 7 in the first place.
What happens if the document is not attached
Failing to attach the actual document, or attaching it without setting forth its substance in the pleading, leaves the pleading's factual basis incomplete. Courts and opposing counsel are left to take the pleader's characterization of the document on faith rather than examining its actual terms, and the opposing party loses the specific-denial mechanism that Rule 8 otherwise makes available for actionable documents. In practice, a claim or defense grounded on a contract, note, or similar instrument is on much weaker footing procedurally if the instrument itself never makes it into the record alongside the pleading.
Related provisions
- Rule 8, Section 7 — Action or defense based on document
- Rule 8, Section 6 — Judgment
- Rule 8, Section 10 — Specific denial