(a) Service of an Answer or Objection. Within twenty days after service of interrogatories, the party upon whom they are served shall serve upon each of the parties a copy of the answer to each interrogatory, except one to which the party objects, in which event the reasons for the objection shall be stated with reasonable particularity.
R 3133.Service of answers or objections to interrogatories
Article 31. Disclosure · Last amended 1994 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 3133 requires a party served with interrogatories to answer each one under oath within twenty days or state objections with reasonable particularity, sets requirements for the form of the answers, and restricts amending answers except by court order or the ongoing supplementation duty under CPLR 3101(h).
Full Text of CPLR 3133
(b) Form of Answers and Objections to Interrogatories. Interrogatories shall be answered in writing under oath by the party served, if an individual, or, if the party served is a corporation, a partnership or a sole proprietorship, by an officer, director, member, agent or employee having the information. Each question shall be answered separately and fully, and each answer shall be preceded by the question to which it responds.
(c) Amended Answers. Except with respect to amendment or supplementation of responses pursuant to subdivision (h) of section 3101, answers to interrogatories may be amended or supplemented only by order of the court upon motion.
Plain-English Summary
CPLR 3133 fills in the mechanics of answering interrogatories once CPLR 3132 gets them served. The recipient has twenty days to serve a copy of the answer to each interrogatory on every party in the case — except for any interrogatory the recipient objects to, where the response states the reasons for the objection with reasonable particularity instead of an answer.
The rule is specific about form. Answers must be sworn: by the individual party if the recipient is a person, or by an officer, director, member, agent, or employee who has the relevant information if the recipient is a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each question gets its own separate, full answer, and each answer has to be preceded by the question it responds to — so a reader isn't left flipping between two documents to match questions with answers.
Once served, answers aren't easily revised. Amending or supplementing them takes a court order on motion, with one exception built in for the ongoing duty under CPLR 3101(h) to correct or supplement a response that's become inaccurate or incomplete.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to answer interrogatories in New York?
Twenty days after service of the interrogatories.
Who has to sign interrogatory answers if the responding party is a company?
An officer, director, member, agent, or employee of the corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship who has the relevant information, and the answers must be sworn.
Do I have to answer every interrogatory, or can I object instead?
You can object to specific interrogatories, but the objection must state the reasons with reasonable particularity; questions you don't object to must be answered fully and separately.
Can I change my answers to interrogatories after I've served them?
Only by court order on motion, except for the ongoing duty under CPLR 3101(h) to correct or supplement a response that's no longer accurate or complete.
Does each interrogatory answer need to repeat the question?
Yes. CPLR 3133(b) requires each answer to be preceded by the question it responds to.
Advisory Committee Notes
This rule is based upon New Jersey rule 4:23-8.
Amendment History
Add, L 1963, ch 422, § 3; amd, L 1993, ch 98, § 13, eff Jan 1, 1994.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: answering interrogatories New Yorkobjecting to interrogatories New Yorktwenty days to answer interrogatories New Yorkamending interrogatory answers New York