Questions on Entry of Default, Default Judgment and Summary Judgment

[Tellurider]

Colorado
I have filed a Defamation of Character civil action in District Court. Service was made along with the Summons and Complaint.
No Motion for Enlargement, No Answer to the Complaint and no contact has been made by the Respondent nor his Counsel to either me as pro se or to the Court within the 20 day time frame (now 5 days past due).

I have prepared a Motion for Default Entry and a Motion for Default Judgement.

My questions:
Do I add the relief sought on the Motion for Default Entry and/or the Motion for Default Judgment?

Do I also need to file a Motion for Summary Judgment?

Am I required to schedule a hearing with the Judicial Assistant to the Judge for any of these?

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

 

[quincy]

First, I want you to wait for others to post and correct any misinformation I may inadvertantly post here, as I do not feel entirely comfortable giving advice on the Rules of Civil Procedure.

You do not need to file a motion for summary judgment. That would be filed if there were no genuine issues of material fact and you were entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. That is not necessarily the case here. You are filing a motion for judgment based upon the fact that the other party failed to answer the complaint within the 20 day time allowed.

The motion for judgment by default can be entered by the clerk, if you have determined a specific sum computed for relief (ie. lost wages). You need in your motion to set forth the relief sought, with a short plain statement of the grounds upon which you are entitled to such relief. You need to have an affidavit attesting to this amount and any costs against the defendant. The clerk will enter the judgment for the amount attested to, if the defendant has been defaulted for failure to appear.

The motion for judgment of default may also be entered by the court. The court would enter the judgment by default, if it is necessary to make an accounting of the facts and a determination as to the amount of damages to be awarded. This is done when there is no certain sum determined as relief or when the sum cannot be computed to be made certain. The amount of damages would be determined by the judge by establishing the truth of any averment made and by reviewing the evidence upon which the relief is sought. If a judgment is entered by default, the relief sought will be granted.

A hearing would be scheduled if it is necessary for the judge to determine the amount of relief to be granted.

Again, wait for others to post who are bound to have far more knowledge than I about the Rules of Civil Procedure.