In Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (2009), the U.S. Supreme Court put to rest any question about whether its decision in Bell Atlantic Corporation v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (2007), established a new pleading standard under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(a). The Twombly opinion raised eyebrows because of its dismissive discussion of the pleading standard in Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41 (1957), which had governed motions to dismiss under Rule 8(a) for fifty years. In Ashcroft, the Court made clear that the more demanding “plausibility” standard set forth in Twombly applies in “all civil cases”.
This article discusses the “plausibility” standard in detail, indicating that it replaces the essentially negative test in Conley with an affirmative standard for successfully stating a claim in federal court. The components of the plausibility test are analyzed, based on the Court’s discussions in both Twombly and Ashcroft. The author concludes that the two decisions give defense attorneys a roadmap for contesting lawsuits at the pleading stage and will allow district court to more vigorously apply Rule 12(b)(6).
"The Plausibility Standard under Twombly and Ashcroft" was published by Defense News, Summer 2009.