(A) Definitions. As used in this rule:
(1) “Offer” means a written notification to an adverse party of the offeror’s willingness to stipulate to the entry of a judgment in a sum certain, which is deemed to include all costs and interest then accrued. If a party has made more than one offer, the most recent offer controls for the purposes of this rule.
(2) “Counteroffer” means a written reply to an offer, served within 21 days after service of the offer, in which a party rejects an offer of the adverse party and makes his or her own offer.
(3) “Average offer” means the sum of an offer and a counteroffer, divided by two. If no counteroffer is made, the offer shall be used as the average offer.
(4) “Verdict” includes,
(a) a jury verdict,
(b) a judgment by the court after a nonjury trial,
(c) a judgment entered as a result of a ruling on a motion after rejection of the offer of judgment, including a motion entering judgment on an arbitration award.
(5) “Adjusted verdict” means the verdict plus interest and costs from the filing of the complaint through the date of the offer.
(6) “Actual costs” means the costs and fees taxable in a civil action and a reasonable attorney fee, dating to the rejection of the prevailing party’s last offer or counteroffer, for services
necessitated by the failure to stipulate to the entry of judgment.
(B) Offer. Until 28 days before trial, a party may serve on the adverse party a written offer to stipulate to the entry of a judgment for the whole or part of the claim, including interest and costs then accrued.
(C) Acceptance or Rejection of Offer.
(1) To accept, the adverse party, within 21 days after service of the offer, must serve on the other parties a written notice of agreement to stipulate to the entry of the judgment offered, and file the offer, the notice of acceptance, and proof of service of the notice with the court. The court shall enter a judgment according to the terms of the stipulation.
(2) An offer is rejected if the offeree
(a) expressly rejects it in writing, or
(b) does not accept it as provided by subrule (C)(1). A rejection does not preclude a later offer by either party.
(3) A counteroffer may be accepted or rejected in the same manner as an offer.
(D) Imposition of Costs Following Rejection of Offer. If an offer is rejected, costs are payable as follows:
(1) If the adjusted verdict is more favorable to the offeror than the average offer, the offeree must pay to the offeror the offeror’s actual costs incurred in the prosecution or defense of the action.
(2) If the adjusted verdict is more favorable to the offeree than the average offer, the offeror must pay to the offeree the offeree’s actual costs incurred in the prosecution or defense of the action. However, an offeree who has not made a counteroffer may not recover actual costs unless the offer was made less than 42 days before trial.
(3) The court shall determine the actual costs incurred. The court may, in the interest of justice, refuse to award an attorney fee under this rule. Interest of justice exceptions may apply, but are not limited to:
(i) cases involving offers that are token or de minimis in the context of the case; or
(ii) cases involving an issue of first impression or an issue of public interest.
(4) Evidence of an offer is admissible only in a proceeding to determine costs.
(5) Proceedings under this rule do not affect a contract or relationship between a party and his or her attorney.
(6) A request for costs under this subrule must be filed and served within 28 days after the entry of the judgment or entry of an order denying a timely motion
(i) for a new trial,
(ii) to set aside the judgment, or
(iii) for rehearing or reconsideration.
(E) This rule does not apply to class action cases filed under MCR 3.501.
Michigan tracks the orders that adopt and amend its Court Rules in a separate administrative record rather than printing a history note beneath each rule in the compiled rules text reproduced here. The text above is verified current through the source’s own May 1, 2026 update; for the full order-by-order history of this rule, see the Michigan Supreme Court’s rules and orders page.
An offer under this rule is a written proposal to stipulate to judgment for a specific sum, covering all costs and interest accrued to that point; if a party has made more than one, only the most recent one counts. The other side has 21 days to respond with a counteroffer of its own, and if neither side backs down, the rule compares the eventual verdict, adjusted for interest and costs since the case began, against the average of the offer and counteroffer to decide who guessed closer. An offer can be made any time up until 28 days before trial, and it's accepted by serving written notice of agreement and filing it with the court within 21 days, or rejected by an express written rejection or by letting the 21 days pass without a response.
Guessing wrong carries a real cost. If the adjusted verdict favors the party who made the offer more than the average offer did, the other side has to pay that offeror's actual costs — including a reasonable attorney fee — incurred after the rejection; the same runs the other way if the verdict favors the offeree, though an offeree who never made a counteroffer can only recover those costs if the original offer came less than 42 days before trial. Courts keep some discretion here: in the interest of justice, a court can decline to award attorney fees at all, particularly for token or nominal offers, or in cases involving a truly novel legal issue or one of real public interest. A request for these costs has to be filed within 28 days of judgment (or of an order denying certain post-trial motions), the rule doesn't touch the underlying relationship between a party and its own attorney, and evidence of the offer itself is admissible only when the court is deciding the costs question — never on the merits. The rule doesn't apply to class actions.