What Should a Washington Business Do After Being Served With a Lawsuit?

Being served with a lawsuit is one of the more stressful moments a business owner can face. The instinct to panic, ignore the paperwork, or fire off an angry response to the other side is understandable — but it’s also the fastest way to make a bad situation worse. In Washington State, how a business responds in the first days after service can significantly affect its legal position, its costs, and even whether it wins or loses the case before ever setting foot in a courtroom.

This article walks through the essential first steps a Washington business should take after being served, the deadlines that apply, and the common mistakes that can turn a manageable dispute into a costly one.

Step One: Confirm What Was Served and When

The first task is deceptively simple but often overlooked: determine exactly what documents were served, how they were served, and on what date. In Washington, a lawsuit typically begins with a summons and complaint. The summons tells the defendant it is being sued and specifies the deadline to respond; the complaint lays out the plaintiff’s factual allegations and legal claims.

Washington law allows service in several ways, including personal service on an individual or a company’s registered agent, service on a corporation’s officer or managing agent, and in some cases service by mail or publication if personal service cannot be accomplished after diligent efforts. Under RCW 4.28.080, businesses organized in Washington (or registered to do business in the state) must maintain a registered agent for service of process, and lawsuits are frequently served there first.

It matters how service occurred because Washington’s response deadlines can vary. Generally, a defendant has 20 days after service to file a Notice of Appearance and, eventually, an Answer, if served within Washington State. If service occurred out of state, the response period extends to 60 days under Washington’s civil rules. Getting this deadline wrong — even by a few days — can expose the business to a default judgment.

Step Two: Don’t Ignore It — and Don’t Respond Directly to the Plaintiff

It’s tempting, especially for a smaller business without in-house legal staff, to either set the lawsuit aside (“we’ll deal with it later”) or call the other side directly to try to work things out informally. Both instincts carry real risk.

Ignoring a properly served lawsuit does not make it disappear. If a business fails to respond within the applicable deadline, the plaintiff can move for a default judgment under CR 55 of the Washington Superior Court Civil Rules. A default judgment can result in the plaintiff obtaining everything they asked for — often without the business ever presenting its side of the story. While Washington courts allow motions to vacate a default judgment in limited circumstances, doing so is difficult, costly, and not guaranteed to succeed.

At the same time, communicating directly with the plaintiff or their attorney without guidance from counsel can create problems. Statements made informally — in a phone call, email, or even a text message — can potentially be used as admissions later in the case. This doesn’t mean a business should be uncooperative, but rather that any substantive communication about the dispute should go through legal counsel once litigation has begun.

Step Three: Contact Legal Counsel Immediately

Perhaps the single most important step after being served is contacting a Washington business litigation attorney as soon as possible — ideally within days, not weeks. Early engagement allows counsel to:

• Confirm the response deadline and file a timely Notice of Appearance, which formally puts the plaintiff and court on notice that the business intends to defend the case
• Evaluate whether the court has proper jurisdiction and whether venue is correct
• Identify whether the lawsuit was served correctly, which can matter if there are grounds to challenge defective service
• Begin assessing the merits of the claims and any available defenses
• Advise on communications, both internally and with the opposing party, to avoid inadvertent admissions or waiver of rights

Many businesses delay contacting an attorney because they’re unsure whether the claim is serious or hope it will resolve informally. But because Washington’s response deadlines are short — often just 20 days — waiting even two or three weeks to “see what happens” can leave little time to prepare an adequate response.

Step Four: Preserve Evidence Immediately

As soon as litigation is reasonably anticipated — and certainly once a lawsuit has been filed — a business has a legal obligation to preserve all documents and information that may be relevant to the dispute. This is often called a “litigation hold.”

In Washington, failing to preserve evidence can lead to claims of spoliation, and courts have discretion to sanction a party that destroys or fails to preserve relevant evidence after the duty to preserve arises. Sanctions can range from adverse inference instructions (telling the jury it may assume the missing evidence was unfavorable to the party that lost it) to, in egregious cases, default judgment.

Practical preservation steps include:

• Suspending routine document destruction or email auto-deletion policies related to the dispute
• Identifying and securing relevant contracts, correspondence, invoices, and internal communications
• Notifying key employees who may have relevant documents or knowledge not to delete or alter anything related to the matter
• Preserving text messages and communications on personal devices if they relate to company business connected to the dispute

Acting quickly here protects the business’s position and demonstrates good faith to the court if preservation questions arise later.

Step Five: Assess Insurance Coverage

Many business disputes — particularly those involving allegations of negligence, breach of professional duties, employment practices, or certain contract disputes — may be covered, in whole or in part, by the business’s commercial general liability policy, professional liability policy, directors and officers (D&O) policy, or employment practices liability insurance.

Businesses should promptly notify their insurance broker or carrier after being served, since most policies contain strict notice requirements, and late notice can jeopardize coverage. Even if coverage is uncertain, many policies require notice of any claim that could potentially trigger coverage, and Washington courts generally hold policyholders to these notice provisions. An attorney can help review the complaint against the policy language to determine whether a claim should be tendered to the insurer.

Step Six: Conduct an Internal Review of the Underlying Facts

While counsel is handling the procedural response, the business should begin gathering internal information about the events described in the complaint. This typically includes:

• Identifying employees or former employees with knowledge of the relevant transaction or relationship
• Locating the underlying contract, purchase order, or agreement at issue
• Reviewing internal communications and records related to the dispute
• Assessing whether the business has counterclaims of its own against the plaintiff

This internal fact-gathering allows counsel to evaluate the strength of the claims and begin developing a defense strategy — including whether to file an Answer denying the allegations, assert affirmative defenses, or bring counterclaims against the plaintiff in the same lawsuit.

Step Seven: Decide on a Response Strategy

Once the initial deadline pressure is addressed through a Notice of Appearance, the business and its counsel must decide how to formally respond. Common options under Washington’s Superior Court Civil Rules include:

• Filing an Answer that responds to each allegation in the complaint and asserts any applicable affirmative defenses (such as statute of limitations, failure to state a claim, or contributory fault)
• Filing a motion to dismiss under CR 12(b), if there are grounds to challenge the legal sufficiency of the complaint, jurisdiction, or venue before responding on the merits
• Filing counterclaims, if the business has its own claims arising from the same dispute, which can be asserted in the same lawsuit rather than filed separately

The right approach depends heavily on the strength of the plaintiff’s claims and the facts uncovered during the initial internal review.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Washington businesses facing a new lawsuit frequently make a handful of avoidable mistakes:

• Missing the response deadline because the business assumed it had more time or didn’t realize the clock had started running upon service
• Discussing the case informally with employees, customers, or on social media in ways that could be discovered and used against the business later
• Destroying or failing to preserve documents, even inadvertently, through routine deletion policies
• Delaying insurance notification, potentially waiving coverage that could have paid for defense costs or a settlement
• Trying to handle the matter without counsel to save money upfront, only to face a default judgment or a weaker negotiating position later

Conclusion

Being served with a lawsuit is never welcome news, but how a Washington business responds in the first days and weeks afterward can meaningfully shape the outcome. Confirming the deadline, engaging counsel promptly, preserving evidence, checking insurance coverage, and conducting an internal fact review all lay the groundwork for an effective defense. Businesses that treat the initial response period as a critical strategic window — rather than a formality to deal with later — put themselves in a far stronger position as the case moves forward.