Under default entry procedures, relief is sought because the defendant failed to plead. What filing is typically used to obtain the clerk's entry of default?

Under default entry procedures, relief is sought because the defendant failed to plead. What filing is typically used to obtain the clerk's entry of default?

• A. Affidavit and attorney's motion for clerk to enter default
• B. Notice of default
• C. Judgment by default entered by the judge
• D. Order to show cause

Answer: (A)

In North Carolina, when a defendant fails to plead after being served, the clerk’s entry of default is typically obtained by submitting an affidavit of service (showing that the complaint and summons were served and that no responsive pleading was filed within the time allowed) together with an attorney’s motion requesting the clerk to enter default. The clerk, upon receiving these papers, records the default without a judge’s involvement at this stage. This keeps the process efficient and fully documented, and it can later lead to a default judgment if appropriate. A notice of default is not the correct mechanism to trigger the clerk’s entry of default, and a judgment by default entered by a judge or an order to show cause are used for different procedural purposes and timelines.

In North Carolina, when a defendant fails to plead after being served, the clerk’s entry of default is typically obtained by submitting an affidavit of service (showing that the complaint and summons were served and that no responsive pleading was filed within the time allowed) together with an attorney’s motion requesting the clerk to enter default. The clerk, upon receiving these papers, records the default without a judge’s involvement at this stage. This keeps the process efficient and fully documented, and it can later lead to a default judgment if appropriate.

A notice of default is not the correct mechanism to trigger the clerk’s entry of default, and a judgment by default entered by a judge or an order to show cause are used for different procedural purposes and timelines.