Pleadings do more than just serve as a gateway to the litigation process, and as such, serious attention should be given to the content of pleadings. Within this context, this paper considers five fundamental and interrelated principles: pleadings impact the process and outcome of a lawsuit; pleadings define the parameters of litigation; pleadings must include sufficient content to support a cause of action or defence; the content of pleadings restricts the issues which can be properly decided by the court; and pleadings can be amended at any time prior to the conclusion of trial, subject to limited exceptions. The treatment of these principles in select court decisions in Canada, and, more specifically, Alberta, is also discussed. Finally, this paper offers a brief comment on how judicial expectations regarding pleadings have been or might yet be affected by the Supreme Court of Canada’s recent call for a “culture shift” in litigation.

This paper is part of a collection presented at LESA’s Drafting Pleadings, Affidavits, and Orders: The Pleading Edge seminar Edmonton on February 9, 2016 and in Calgary on February 17, 2016.