Rule 85.Relief from Judgment

Rule 83 asks the court to reconsider what it decided. Rule 85 asks it to undo a judgment for reasons that often have nothing to do with the merits.

Clerical mistakes

The court must correct a clerical mistake or one arising from oversight or omission, on motion or on its own with notice. There is no deadline. The one limit: once an appeal is filed and pending, correction requires the appellate court's leave. After correction, execution must conform to the corrected judgment.

The six grounds for relief

• mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect;
• newly discovered evidence that with reasonable diligence could not have been found in time to move under Rule 83(a)(1);
• fraud (whether previously called intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or other misconduct of an opposing party;
• the judgment is void;
• the judgment has been satisfied, released or discharged; rests on an earlier judgment that has been reversed or vacated; or applying it prospectively is no longer equitable; or
• any other reason justifying relief.

The timing split

Every motion must be made within a reasonable time. The first three grounds -- excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence, and fraud -- carry an additional hard cap of no more than 6 months after entry, not extendable by stipulation or court order except as Rule 4(b)(2) allows. The last three have no outer limit, which is why a void judgment can be attacked long afterward.

A Rule 85 motion does not affect the judgment's finality or appealability or suspend its operation -- unlike Rule 83, it does not hold the judgment in abeyance. Timely filing may affect the appeal clock under ARCAP 9(e)(1)(E).

What the rule does not limit

The court retains power to entertain an independent action for relief, to grant relief to a party served by publication under Rule 83(e), and to set aside a judgment for fraud on the court -- a category distinct from the fraud ground in section (b)(3) and not subject to its six-month cap.

Reversed foreign judgments

Section (e) is mandatory and specific: if an Arizona judgment was rendered on a foreign judgment from another state or country and that court later reverses or sets it aside, the Arizona court must set aside, vacate and annul its judgment. No motion, no discretion, no deadline.