Rule 68.Offer of Judgment

Rule 68 gives a defending party a tool to push a case toward resolution by putting a number on the table with real consequences attached. At least 14 days before the trial date, that party may serve an offer to allow judgment on specified terms, including the costs accrued up to that point. The opposing party then has 14 days to accept it in writing. If they do, either side can file the offer, the acceptance, and proof of service, and the clerk enters judgment — no further court action needed.

If the offer is not accepted within that window, it is treated as withdrawn. That does not use up the offering party's options: a new offer can still be made later, and the rule expressly protects the losing side from having the earlier rejection held against them at trial, since evidence of an unaccepted offer is inadmissible except when the court is deciding costs. Rule 68(c) extends the same mechanism to a case where liability has already been established but the amount of damages is still being litigated — the party held liable can make an offer of judgment on the damages question, served a reasonable time, and at least 14 days, before the hearing on the extent of liability.

The rule's real leverage sits in Rule 68(d). If the party who rejected the offer ends up with a judgment no more favorable than what was offered, that party must pay the costs incurred after the offer was made. That risk is what gives the rule its bite: it rewards a realistic early offer and penalizes a party who gambles on trial and loses that gamble, even if they still win the underlying case.