Can I file a civil complaint and claim a subsequent pleading will allege grounds in greater detail [specificity]?
Well, yes and no. Your complaint — and not any subsequent pleading — is your only opportunity to state facts sufficient to support your cause[s] of action. However, in California and many other jurisdictions, you can file an amended complaint [i.e., another pleading] without a judge’s permission at any time before a defendant files an answer; you’d need the court’s permission to file an amended complaint once the defendant has made an appearance. Unless you have a statute of limitations problem, though, I would recommend against filing a complaint knowing that it needs more facts in order to state a valid cause of action. Further, I would never admit in a court filing that I did not have sufficient facts to state a cause of action; I would instead make vague or “boilerplate” factual allegations upon my “information and belief,” and then get the actual facts through the discovery process.
