A formal exception to a ruling or order is unnecessary. When the ruling or order is requested or made, a party need only state the action that it wants the court to take or objects to, along with the grounds for the request or objection. Failing to object does not prejudice a party who had no opportunity to do so when the ruling or order was made.
Rule 46.Exceptions Unnecessary
Chapter VI: Trials · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 46 gets rid of the old formal "exception" to a court ruling — a party preserves an issue for appeal by telling the court what action it wants or what it objects to, and why, and a party who never had the chance to object is not penalized for staying quiet.
Full Text of Rule 46
Plain-English Summary
Under older practice, a lawyer who disagreed with a ruling had to formally "except" to it on the record or risk losing the right to challenge that ruling later. Rule 46 removes that ritual entirely. All a party needs to do, when the court requests or makes a ruling, is state the action it wants the court to take, or the objection it has, along with the grounds for that request or objection. Substance replaces formality: the court and the other side need to know what you want and why, not that you invoked a particular magic phrase.
The rule's second sentence protects a party caught off guard. If a ruling or order is made without giving a party a real opportunity to object — a sudden ruling mid-argument, for instance — that party is not prejudiced later for having stayed silent in the moment. The rule does not eliminate the need to object; it eliminates the separate, formal step of excepting once an objection has already been made.
This provision sits quietly behind a good deal of appellate practice. Whether a jury instruction was properly challenged under Rule 51, whether an error was preserved well enough to matter under the harmless error standard in Rule 61, or whether a new trial motion under Rule 59 rests on a properly preserved ground all trace back to whether a party did what Rule 46 requires: say what you want, and why, when the court is deciding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to say "I except to that ruling" to preserve it for appeal?
No. Rule 46 abolishes the formal exception. You preserve the issue by stating the action you want the court to take or the objection you are making, along with your grounds, at the time of the ruling.
What exactly do I need to do to preserve an objection under Rule 46?
State what you want the court to do, or what you object to, and the reasons for it, at the time the ruling or order is made. That is the whole requirement — no separate exception is needed afterward.
What if the judge rules on something before I have any chance to object?
Rule 46's second sentence protects you: failing to object does not prejudice a party who had no opportunity to do so when the ruling or order was made.
Does Rule 46 mean I never have to object at trial?
No. You still need to state your request or objection and its grounds at the time the court acts. Rule 46 only removes the old separate step of formally "excepting" to a ruling you already objected to.
How does Rule 46 connect to appellate review of trial court rulings?
Source & verification. Rule text and Advisory Committee Notes are
reproduced verbatim from the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, adopted by the
Supreme Court of Mississippi. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
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