Rule 15.Time for Filing Pleadings or Motions

Rule 15 lays out the clock for responsive pleadings and motions. An answer to a complaint or third-party complaint — or a motion responding to one — is due within the time Rule 7 C(2) gives a defendant to appear and defend. When the defendant was served by publication, that window is 30 days from the date the summons was first published. A reply to a counterclaim, or a reply raising new matter in avoidance of an answer’s defenses, is due within 30 days of service of the counterclaim or answer, and the same 30-day period applies to an answer to a cross-claim.

The rule also tells parties what happens after a motion is resolved. If the court denies a motion, any pleading that was due in response to the underlying pleading must now be filed within 10 days after service of the order denying it, unless the order says otherwise. If the court grants a motion that calls for an amended pleading, that amended pleading is due on the same 10-day schedule. And once a pleading is amended, the opposing party gets whichever is longer: the time remaining to respond to the original pleading, or 10 days after service of the amended one.

Rule 15 D gives the court room to extend these deadlines. Except where some other law forbids it, a court may allow a late pleading or motion, or extend a filing deadline by order, on whatever terms are just — even after the original deadline has passed.