Prestin v. Baumgartner

The sole issue on this appeal is as follows: Was the defendant’s answer sufficient either to negate the essential allegations of the plaintiff’s complaint or to raise an affirmative defense thereto ?

The plaintiff’s contention here, as in the trial court, is that the defendant’s answer was comprised of negative pregnants and was insufficient to place the allegations of the complaint in issue. 2

Negative pregnants occur in responsive pleadings where, as in the instant answer, the denials are stated in the very words employed in the complaint. Such denials were condemned by this court as early as…