Rule 126.Responses to the complaint

Rule 126(a) sets the defendant's clock: an answer, together with any compulsory counterclaims, is due within thirty days of service of the complaint. Rule 126(b) sets the plaintiff's clock for a counterclaim: a reply is due within twenty days of service of the counterclaim, and that reply — like the answer itself — has to come with a list of everyone consulted or relied on in preparing it. Cross-claims, permissive counterclaims, and third-party claims aren't allowed unless every party agrees; whatever counterclaims, cross-claims, or third-party claims do go forward stay subject to Rules 124 through 131.

Rule 126(c) lets a party respond to a complaint or counterclaim with a motion to dismiss instead of an answer, and it lays out a full briefing schedule: the motion and opening brief are due within thirty days of service of the complaint (twenty days for a counterclaim), the answering brief is due fifteen days after that, and the reply brief is due ten days after the answering brief. Opening and answering briefs run no longer than twenty-five pages; the reply tops out at ten. If a motion to dismiss a claim gets denied, the answer to that claim is due within ten days of the denial.

The Court moves fast on its end too. Within thirty days of the final reply brief — or within thirty days of oral argument, if the parties argue the motion — the Court either issues its decision or tells the parties when to expect it. That extra time normally caps out at another thirty days, unless the assigned judge has filed the certification Rule 130(d) allows for complex or heavily loaded cases.