Setting aside a Nevada default judgment: six months, and a separate route if you were never served
Nevada procedure · Last verified August 17, 2026
Nevada restyled its civil rules in 2019, and Rule 60 came out of that process looking much like the federal rule with two significant differences: the outer deadline is six months, not a year, and there is a separate provision for defendants who were never personally served.
Both matter more than the familiar excusable-neglect analysis, because both are mechanical.
The grounds
NRCP 60(b) lists six:
On motion and just terms, the court may relieve a party or its legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding for the following reasons:
(1) mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect; (2) newly discovered evidence that, with reasonable diligence, could not have been discovered in time to move for a new trial under Rule 59(b); (3) fraud (whether previously called intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or misconduct by an opposing party; (4) the judgment is void; (5) the judgment has been satisfied, released, or discharged; it is based on an earlier judgment that has been reversed or vacated; or applying it prospectively is no longer equitable; or (6) any other reason that justifies relief.
Six months, and it cannot be extended
NRCP 60(c)(1) is where Nevada departs from the federal model:
Timing. A motion under Rule 60(b) must be made within a reasonable time—and for reasons (1), (2), and (3) no more than 6 months after the date of the proceeding or the date of service of written notice of entry of the judgment or order, whichever date is later. The time for filing the motion cannot be extended under Rule 6(b).
Three things to take from that.
Six months, not one year. Grounds (1) mistake and excusable neglect, (2) newly discovered evidence and (3) fraud are all capped there.
The clock starts on the later of two dates — the date of the proceeding, or the date written notice of entry was served. That second trigger often gives more time than people assume, and it is worth establishing when, or whether, notice of entry was ever served.
It cannot be enlarged. The rule closes the door on Rule 6(b) expressly. There is no motion for more time.
Grounds (4), (5) and (6) are not subject to the six months — only to the general "reasonable time" requirement. A void judgment under (4) is therefore attackable later.
| Ground | Outer limit |
|---|---|
| (1) mistake, inadvertence, surprise, excusable neglect | 6 months, non-extendable |
| (2) newly discovered evidence | 6 months, non-extendable |
| (3) fraud, misrepresentation, misconduct | 6 months, non-extendable |
| (4) judgment is void | reasonable time only |
| (5) satisfied, released, discharged, or no longer equitable | reasonable time only |
| (6) any other reason justifying relief | reasonable time only |
Filing does not pause the judgment
NRCP 60(c)(2) says so directly:
Effect on Finality. The motion does not affect the judgment's finality or suspend its operation.
A pending motion is not a stay. If money is being collected, that has to be addressed separately.
The route for defendants who were never served
NRCP 60(d)(2) is the provision most worth knowing, and it is easy to miss because it sits in a subdivision headed "Other Powers to Grant Relief":
This rule does not limit a court's power to: … (2) upon motion filed within 6 months after written notice of entry of a default judgment is served, set aside the default judgment against a defendant who was not personally served with a summons and complaint and who has not appeared in the action, admitted service, signed a waiver of service, or otherwise waived service;
This is a standalone power, and its conditions are factual rather than equitable. The defendant must:
- have not been personally served with the summons and complaint; and
- not have appeared in the action; and
- not have admitted service, signed a waiver, or otherwise waived service.
Meet those, move within six months of written notice of entry, and the court has power to set the judgment aside — without the excusable-neglect showing that Rule 60(b)(1) would require.
The same subdivision preserves two other powers: an independent action for relief under (d)(1), and the power to set aside a judgment for fraud upon the court under (d)(3), neither of which carries the six-month cap.
Check whether the judgment should have been entered
Before arguing the merits, look at how it was obtained. NRCP 55(b)(1) limits what the clerk may do:
By the Clerk. If the plaintiff's claim is for a sum certain or a sum that can be made certain by computation, the clerk—on the plaintiff's request, with an affidavit showing the amount due—must enter judgment for that amount and costs against a defendant who has been defaulted for not appearing and who is neither a minor nor an incapacitated person.
A clerk's judgment for anything other than a sum certain is outside that authority. Everything else has to go to the court under (b)(2), which carries a notice requirement:
If the party against whom a default judgment is sought has appeared personally or by a representative, that party or its representative must be served with written notice of the application at least 7 days before the hearing.
And a default judgment may be entered against a minor or incapacitated person "only if represented by a general guardian, conservator, or other like fiduciary who has appeared."
The entry of default itself comes first, under Rule 55(a): the clerk "must enter the party's default" once the failure to plead or otherwise defend "is shown by affidavit or otherwise."
How Nevada compares
| Nevada | Colorado | Federal | Arizona | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outer limit, mistake / excusable neglect | 6 months | 182 days | 1 year | 6 months |
| Clock runs from | the later of the proceeding or written notice of entry | entry | entry | entry |
| Extendable | no — Rule 6(b) excluded | — | no | no |
| Void judgment time-limited | no | no | no | no |
| Separate route for a never-served defendant | yes, Rule 60(d)(2) | yes, answer to the merits within 182 days | no | no |
| Notice to a party who has appeared | 7 days | 7 days | 7 days | — |
| Motion stays enforcement | no, expressly | no, expressly | no | no |
A short checklist
- Find the date written notice of entry was served. Under NRCP 60(c)(1) the six months may run from that rather than from the judgment.
- Do not assume a year. Nevada is six months on grounds (1), (2) and (3), and the time cannot be extended.
- Ask first whether you were ever personally served. If not — and you never appeared or waived — Rule 60(d)(2) is a cleaner route than excusable neglect.
- Consider whether the judgment is void under 60(b)(4). That ground is not capped at six months.
- Check who entered the judgment. A clerk may only enter one for a sum certain against a non-appearing, non-minor defendant.
- If you had appeared, check for the 7 days' written notice of the application.
- Move within a reasonable time even inside the six months — the cap is an outer limit, not a safe harbor.
- Arrange a stay separately. The motion does not suspend the judgment's operation.
Where these rules live
- NRCP 55 — Default; Default Judgment
- NRCP 59 — New Trial; Altering or Amending a Judgment
- NRCP 60 — Relief from a judgment or order
- NRCP 6 — Computing and Extending Time
This page explains what the rules say. It isn't legal advice, and what constitutes excusable neglect under NRCP 60(b)(1) is developed in case law this site doesn't cover.