Rule 21.Misjoinder and nonjoinder of parties

Ch. IV: Parties · Current through June 1, 2026 · Last verified September 9, 2026

In one sentenceRule 21 says naming the wrong parties never justifies dismissing the case: parties may be dropped or added at any stage, on terms that are just.

Full Text of Rule 21

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Misjoinder of parties is not ground for dismissal of an action. Parties may be dropped or added by order of the Court on motion of any party or of its own initiative at any stage of the action and on such terms as are just. Any claim against a party may be severed and proceeded with separately.

End

Plain-English Summary

A single provision, and a merciful one. Misjoinder of parties is not a ground for dismissing an action. Parties may be dropped or added by order of the court, on motion of any party or on the court's own initiative, at any stage of the action and on such terms as are just.

It is the counterweight to Rules 19 and 20. Those rules tell you who should be in the case; this one says that getting it wrong is a fixable error rather than a fatal one. In a court where many litigants have no lawyer, that is not a small point — a petition naming a grandparent who should not have been named, or omitting one who should, is corrected rather than thrown out.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my case be dismissed if I named the wrong person?

No. Misjoinder of parties is not a ground for dismissal of an action.

Can parties be added or removed later?

Yes. Parties may be dropped or added by order of the court, on motion of any party or on the court's own initiative, at any stage of the action and on such terms as are just.

Source & verification. The rule text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Delaware Family Court Rules of Civil Procedure (Fam. Ct. Civ. R. 21), and every rule has been checked word for word against the Delaware Family Court’s own published edition of these rules. Current through June 1, 2026. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified September 9, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: misjoinder not ground for dismissal Delawareadd or drop parties DelawareFam. Ct. Civ. R. 21