Persons having claims against the plaintiff may be joined as defendants and required to interplead when their claims are such that the plaintiff is or may be exposed to double or multiple liability. It is not ground for objecting to the joinder that the claims of the several claimants or the titles on which their claims depend do not have a common origin or are not identical but are adverse to and independent of one another, or that the plaintiff avers that he is not liable in whole or in part to any or all of the claimants. A defendant exposed to similar liability may obtain such interpleader by way of cross-claim or counterclaim. The provisions of this rule supplement and do not in any way limit the joinder of parties permitted in Rule 20.
Rule 22.Interpleader
Part IV: Parties · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 22 lets someone facing rival claims to the same money or property pull every claimant into a single lawsuit so one court sorts out who gets paid.
Full Text of Rule 22
Plain-English Summary
Interpleader solves a specific problem: a person or company holding funds or property finds two or more people each claiming it, and paying the wrong one risks getting sued twice over the same debt. Rule 22 lets that person join all the competing claimants as defendants and force them to fight out their claims against each other in one case, rather than the stakeholder facing separate lawsuits from each one. The claimants do not need related claims to be pulled in together — the rule specifically allows interpleader even when their claims, or the legal titles behind them, share no common origin and are not identical, so long as they are all pointed at the same fund or property. It does not matter if the plaintiff denies owing anything to some or all of the claimants; the point of the rule is to get everyone's competing claims resolved together instead of piecemeal.
Interpleader is not limited to plaintiffs. A defendant facing the same kind of exposure to double or multiple liability can raise interpleader through a crossclaim or a counterclaim rather than starting a new lawsuit. Rule 22 works alongside Rule 20's permissive-joinder rule rather than replacing it — the rule expressly says it supplements, and does not limit, the joinder of parties Rule 20 already allows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why would someone sue people who are suing them?
Interpleader is not about picking a side — it lets a person holding disputed funds or property, who is caught between rival claimants, force everyone into one case so a single court decides who is entitled to what, instead of the holder risking separate lawsuits and paying twice.
Do the claims against the stakeholder have to be related to each other?
No. Rule 22 allows interpleader even when the claimants' claims, or the legal basis for them, have no common origin and are not identical, as long as they all target the same fund or property and expose the stakeholder to double or multiple liability.
Can a defendant use interpleader, not just a plaintiff?
Yes. A defendant facing similar exposure to competing claims can raise interpleader by way of a crossclaim or counterclaim, without having to file a separate action.
Does interpleader replace the normal rules for joining parties?
No. Rule 22 states that it supplements Rule 20's joinder provisions rather than limiting them.
Source & verification. Rule text, Advisory Committee Notes, and
amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure,
adopted by the Utah Supreme Court. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: interpleadercompeting claims to same fundstakeholder lawsuitdouble or multiple liabilitywho gets the money claimed by two people