Each court shall establish procedures for the prompt dispatch of business, at which motions requiring notice and hearing may be heard and disposed of; but the judge at any time or place and on such notice, if any, as he considers reasonable may make orders for the advancement, conduct, and hearing of actions. To expedite its business, the court may make provision by rule or order for the submission and determination of motions without oral hearing upon brief written statements of reasons in support and opposition.
Rule 78.Motion Practice
Chapter X: Courts and Clerks · Last amended April 17, 2003 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 78 requires each court to set up procedures for handling its motion business promptly, lets a judge set hearings on whatever notice the judge considers reasonable, and allows a court to decide motions on written submissions instead of oral argument.
Full Text of Rule 78
Advisory Committee Notes
Rule 78 does not alter any local rules governing motion practice; however, the rule must be considered in light of Rule 83.
Amendment History
Effective March 1, 1989, Rule 78 was amended by changing its title to “MOTION PRACTICE” and by abrogating provisions for local rules. 536-538 So. 2d XXXI (West Miss. Cas. 1989).
Plain-English Summary
Rule 78 is short, but it sets the framework for how motions move through a Mississippi trial court. Each court must establish its own procedures for the prompt dispatch of business at which motions requiring notice and a hearing get heard and decided — a mandate to keep motions moving, not a fixed checklist every court must copy.
Within that framework, the judge keeps broad discretion. A judge may make orders for the advancement, conduct, and hearing of actions at any time or place, on whatever notice — including none at all, where circumstances call for it — the judge considers reasonable.
The rule's second sentence lets a court skip oral argument altogether: to expedite its business, a court may provide for submitting and deciding motions on brief written statements of the reasons for and against them, rather than holding a hearing.
The official notes explain that Rule 78 doesn't override a court's existing local rules on motion practice, but it has to be read together with Rule 83, which governs how those local rules on motion procedure get adopted and approved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I always entitled to an oral hearing when I file a motion?
No. Rule 78 lets a court decide motions on brief written statements of the reasons for and against the motion instead of holding oral argument, when the court adopts that approach to expedite its business.
How much notice does a judge have to give before hearing a motion?
Rule 78 lets the judge set whatever notice, if any, the judge considers reasonable for advancing, conducting, or hearing an action, rather than fixing one uniform notice period for every motion.
Does every Mississippi trial court handle motions the same way?
Not exactly. Rule 78 requires each court to establish its own procedures for promptly dispatching motions that require notice and a hearing, and those court-specific procedures are adopted and approved through Rule 83's local-rule process.
Can a judge hold a hearing somewhere other than the courthouse to move a case along?
Yes. Rule 78 lets the judge make orders for the advancement, conduct, and hearing of actions at any time or place the judge considers reasonable.
Does Rule 78 replace a court's local rules about motion practice?
No. The official notes explain that Rule 78 doesn't alter existing local rules governing motion practice, though it has to be read together with Rule 83, which sets the process for adopting and approving those local rules.
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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