Group IV: Parties · Last amended March 1, 2019 · Last verified July 14, 2026
In one sentenceRule 22 lets a party facing competing claims to the same money, property, or obligation force all the claimants into one lawsuit to fight it out among themselves, a procedure known as interpleader.
(1)By a Plaintiff. Persons with claims that may expose a plaintiff to double or multiple liability may be joined as defendants and required to interplead. Joinder for interpleader is proper even though:
(A)the claims of the several claimants, or the titles on which their claims depend, lack a common origin or are adverse and independent rather than identical; or
(B)the plaintiff denies liability in whole or in part to any or all of the claimants.
(2)By a Defendant. A defendant exposed to similar liability may seek interpleader through a crossclaim or counterclaim.
(b)Relation to Other Rules and Statutes. This rule supplements—and does not limit—the joinder of parties allowed by Rule 20. The remedy this rule provides is in addition to—and does not supersede or limit—the remedy provided by any Nevada statute authorizing interpleader. These rules apply to any action brought under statutory interpleader provisions, except as otherwise provided by Rule 81.
Notes
Drafter’s Note, Amendment Effective January 1, 2005: The amendments are technical.
Amendment History
Amended eff. 1-1-05; Amended eff. 3-1-19.
Plain-English Summary
Sometimes someone is holding money or property that two or more people each claim a right to, and paying the wrong one risks getting sued twice over the same thing. Rule 22 gives that person, whether a plaintiff bringing the case or a defendant raising it through a crossclaim or counterclaim, a way out: join all the rival claimants as defendants and make them sort out who is entitled to what. It does not matter that the claimants' theories have nothing to do with each other, or that the party seeking interpleader denies owing anything to some or all of them. The point is to resolve competing claims in one proceeding rather than risk inconsistent outcomes in separate lawsuits.
Rule 22 works alongside the rule allowing multiple defendants to be joined in one case, adding to it rather than replacing it, and it does not cut back on any interpleader remedy that Nevada statutes separately provide. Cases brought under a specific statutory interpleader provision still follow these procedural rules, except to the extent another rule governing certain special proceedings says otherwise.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is interpleader?
Interpleader is a procedure that lets someone holding money or property claimed by more than one person bring all the rival claimants into a single lawsuit, so a court can decide who is entitled to it instead of the holder facing separate suits from each claimant.
Do the competing claims have to be related to each other?
No. Rule 22 specifically allows interpleader even when the claimants' theories or the titles they rely on have nothing in common, or are adverse to one another.
Can I use interpleader if I deny owing anything to the claimants?
Yes. The rule allows interpleader even if the party bringing it denies liability, in whole or in part, to any or all of the claimants involved.
Can a defendant use interpleader, or only a plaintiff?
Both. A plaintiff can join claimants as defendants and require them to interplead, and a defendant facing similar exposure can pursue interpleader through a crossclaim or counterclaim.
Does this rule replace interpleader remedies created by Nevada statutes?
No. Rule 22 supplements those statutory remedies rather than limiting or replacing them, and cases brought under a specific statutory interpleader provision still generally follow these procedural rules.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Advisory Committee
Notes, and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Nevada Rules of Civil
Procedure, adopted by the Supreme Court of Nevada. Last verified July 14, 2026.
· Official source
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