By Priya Raman, Contributing Writer, Policy & RegulationPublished July 2, 2026 · Updated July 2, 2026
How many days does a party get in federal civil litigation?
Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a defendant generally has 21 days after being served to answer a complaint, 30 days to respond to interrogatories or document requests, and a party generally has 30 days after judgment to file a notice of appeal; each window shifts to the next business day if it lands on a weekend or federal holiday.
Summary table
| Event | Deadline | Counting method | Governing rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Answer to complaint (served normally) | 21 days | Calendar days, extended off a weekend/holiday | FRCP Rule 12(a)(1)(A)(i) |
| Answer to complaint (service waived, in-district) | 60 days | Calendar days, from date waiver request was sent | FRCP Rule 12(a)(1)(A)(ii) |
| Answer to complaint (service waived, outside any U.S. district) | 90 days | Calendar days, from date waiver request was sent | FRCP Rule 12(a)(1)(A)(ii) |
| Response to interrogatories | 30 days | Calendar days after service | FRCP Rule 33(b)(2) |
| Response to requests for production | 30 days | Calendar days after service (or after first Rule 26(f) conference) | FRCP Rule 34(b)(2)(A) |
| Notice of appeal, civil case (standard) | 30 days | Calendar days after entry of judgment/order | FRAP Rule 4(a)(1)(A) |
| Notice of appeal (U.S. or a U.S. officer/agency is a party) | 60 days | Calendar days after entry of judgment/order | FRAP Rule 4(a)(1)(B) |
| Trigger-day exclusion (applies to every deadline above) | Day 0 | The day of the triggering event is excluded; counting starts the next day | FRCP Rule 6(a)(1)(A) |
| Weekend/holiday extension (applies to every deadline above) | +1 to 3 days | A deadline landing on a Sat/Sun/legal holiday moves to the next day that isn't | FRCP Rule 6(a)(1)(C) |
Download the full table as CSV
The eleven federal legal holidays this site's calculators use
Both calculators on this site (the Deadline Calculator and the Business Days Calculator) skip Saturdays, Sundays, and these eleven days, matching the legal-holiday list in FRCP Rule 6(a)(6): New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday, Washington's Birthday (Presidents' Day), Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. Rule 6(a)(6) also recognizes any day declared a holiday by the President or Congress, and, for forward-counted periods, any day the state where the district court sits declares a holiday; those state-declared additions are not built into this site's calculators, so a state or local court holiday can still shift a deadline the tool does not show.
Methodology
Where these numbers come from. The day counts and rule citations in the summary table were checked against the official rule text on Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institute (law.cornell.edu) on July 2, 2026: FRCP Rule 6, Rule 12, Rule 33, Rule 34, and FRAP Rule 4. The eleven-holiday list and the day-zero/weekend-extension logic are the same constants this site's own Deadline Calculator and Business Days Calculator run in your browser; this page documents the rule set the tools implement and does not add new deadlines the tools do not already compute.
What is not included. State court deadlines, local rules, standing orders, and case-specific scheduling orders are not covered here and are not built into this site's calculators, because they vary by court and cannot be verified as a single national figure. For state statute-of-limitations examples with citations (California, Texas), see Statute of Limitations by State.
When this is updated. This page is reviewed whenever the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure are amended, and at minimum once a year. Last checked and updated July 2, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How many days does a defendant have to answer a federal complaint?
21 days after being served with the summons and complaint under FRCP Rule 12(a)(1)(A)(i). If the defendant timely waives service under Rule 4(d), the period extends to 60 days after the waiver request was sent, or 90 days if sent to a defendant outside any U.S. judicial district, under FRCP Rule 12(a)(1)(A)(ii).
How many days does a party have to respond to interrogatories or document requests?
30 days after being served, for both interrogatories under FRCP Rule 33(b)(2) and requests for production under FRCP Rule 34(b)(2)(A), unless the parties stipulate to a different period under Rule 29 or the court orders otherwise.
How many days does a party have to file a notice of appeal in a federal civil case?
30 days after entry of the judgment or order appealed from under FRAP Rule 4(a)(1)(A). The period extends to 60 days when the United States, a U.S. agency, or a U.S. officer or employee sued in an official or duty-related capacity is a party, under FRAP Rule 4(a)(1)(B).
Run these deadlines yourself
Use the same rule set in a live calculator: pick a trigger date, choose calendar or court days, and get the deadline instantly.