Federal Court Deadline Calculator

The deadlines it counts, with the rule each one comes from

Eleven events and 18 deadlines, all from the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. Each rule was read at law.cornell.edu, the Legal Information Institute's text of the rules, on October 11, 2026, and the words below are quoted from it. Amendments to the federal rules take effect on December 1; the read date tells you which text these come from.

Summons and complaint served on a defendant

The summons is served under Rule 4, not Rule 5, so Rule 6(d) adds no days here.

• Answer due: 21 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(A)(i) (text read October 11, 2026)."within 21 days after being served with the summons and complaint"Unless another time is specified by a federal statute (Rule 12(a)). Serving a Rule 12 motion changes this time (Rule 12(a)(4)).
• Judge's scheduling order due (90 days after service): 90 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(2) (text read October 11, 2026)."within the earlier of 90 days after any defendant has been served with the complaint or 60 days after any defendant has appeared"This is the judge's deadline, not yours, unless the judge finds good cause for delay. The earlier of this date and 60 days after any defendant appeared applies. Your Rule 26(f) conference is due at least 21 days before the scheduling order is due.

Request to waive service sent (Rule 4(d)), and the defendant waived in time

Counted from the day the request was sent, not the day the waiver came back.

• Answer due (service waived): 60 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(A)(ii); 4(d)(3) (text read October 11, 2026)."if it has timely waived service under Rule 4(d), within 60 days after the request for a waiver was sent"Unless another time is specified by a federal statute (Rule 12(a)).

Request to waive service sent to a defendant outside any judicial district of the United States, and the defendant waived in time

Counted from the day the request was sent.

• Answer due (service waived, defendant outside the United States): 90 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(A)(ii); 4(d)(3) (text read October 11, 2026)."within 90 days after it was sent to the defendant outside any judicial district of the United States"Unless another time is specified by a federal statute (Rule 12(a)).

A defendant appeared

• Judge's scheduling order due (60 days after appearance): 60 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b)(2) (text read October 11, 2026)."within the earlier of 90 days after any defendant has been served with the complaint or 60 days after any defendant has appeared"This is the judge's deadline, not yours, unless the judge finds good cause for delay. The earlier of this date and 90 days after any defendant was served applies.

Scheduling conference, or the day a scheduling order is due under Rule 16(b)

Enter the conference date the court set, or the day the scheduling order is due.

• Rule 26(f) conference held by: 21 days before the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f)(1) (text read October 11, 2026)."at least 21 days before a scheduling conference is to be held or a scheduling order is due under Rule 16(b)"Counted backward: a last day on a weekend or holiday moves earlier (Rule 6(a)(5)), and state holidays do not count (Rule 6(a)(6)(C)). Not in a proceeding exempt from initial disclosure, or when the court orders otherwise.

Rule 26(f) conference held

• Rule 26(f) written report on the discovery plan due: 14 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f)(2) (text read October 11, 2026)."within 14 days after the conference a written report outlining the plan"
• Initial disclosures due: 14 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1)(C) (text read October 11, 2026)."at or within 14 days after the parties' Rule 26(f) conference"Unless a different time is set by stipulation or court order, or a party objects during the conference (Rule 26(a)(1)(C)).

Pleading stating a counterclaim or crossclaim against your client served

Served under Rule 5, so Rule 6(d) adds 3 days after service by mail, by leaving it with the clerk, or by other means consented to in writing.

• Answer to the counterclaim or crossclaim due: 21 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a)(1)(B) (text read October 11, 2026)."within 21 days after being served with the pleading that states the counterclaim or crossclaim"Unless another time is specified by a federal statute (Rule 12(a)).

Judgment entered

Counted from the entry of judgment on the docket, not from service.

• Renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law due: 28 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 50(b) (text read October 11, 2026)."No later than 28 days after the entry of judgment"If the motion addresses a jury issue not decided by a verdict, the 28 days run from the jury's discharge instead. The court must not extend this time (Rule 6(b)(2)).
• Motion to amend or add findings due: 28 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 52(b) (text read October 11, 2026)."On a party's motion filed no later than 28 days after the entry of judgment"The court must not extend this time (Rule 6(b)(2)).
• Motion for a new trial due: 28 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 59(b) (text read October 11, 2026)."A motion for a new trial must be filed no later than 28 days after the entry of judgment."The court must not extend this time (Rule 6(b)(2)).
• Motion to alter or amend the judgment due: 28 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 59(e) (text read October 11, 2026)."A motion to alter or amend a judgment must be filed no later than 28 days after the entry of the judgment."The court must not extend this time (Rule 6(b)(2)).
• Motion for attorney's fees due: 14 days after the event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(d)(2)(B)(i) (text read October 11, 2026)."be filed no later than 14 days after the entry of judgment"Unless a statute or a court order provides otherwise (Rule 54(d)(2)(B)).
• Notice of appeal due: 30 days after the event, Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A) (text read October 11, 2026)."must be filed with the district clerk within 30 days after entry of the judgment or order appealed from"A timely motion listed in Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)(A) restarts this time from the order disposing of the last such motion: use that trigger instead. If the United States, a U.S. agency, or a U.S. officer or employee described in Appellate Rule 4(a)(1)(B) is a party, use the 60-day trigger.

Judgment entered, and the United States, a U.S. agency, or a U.S. officer or employee described in Appellate Rule 4(a)(1)(B) is a party

• Notice of appeal due (United States a party): 60 days after the event, Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(B) (text read October 11, 2026)."may be filed by any party within 60 days after entry of the judgment or order appealed from if one of the parties is"A timely motion listed in Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)(A) restarts this time from the order disposing of the last such motion.

Order disposing of the last remaining Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)(A) motion entered

The motions are those under Rules 50(b), 52(b) and 59, and some under Rules 54 and 60 (Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)(A)).

• Notice of appeal due (after the last post-judgment motion): 30 days after the event, Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(4)(A); 4(a)(1)(A) (text read October 11, 2026)."the time to file an appeal runs for all parties from the entry of the order disposing of the last such remaining motion"If the United States, a U.S. agency, or a U.S. officer or employee described in Appellate Rule 4(a)(1)(B) is a party, use the 60-day trigger.

Order disposing of the last remaining Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)(A) motion entered, and the United States, a U.S. agency, or a U.S. officer or employee described in Appellate Rule 4(a)(1)(B) is a party

• Notice of appeal due (after the last post-judgment motion, United States a party): 60 days after the event, Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(4)(A); 4(a)(1)(B) (text read October 11, 2026)."the time to file an appeal runs for all parties from the entry of the order disposing of the last such remaining motion"

How the days are counted

1. The day of the event is not counted. Rule 6(a)(1)(A) says to exclude the day of the event that triggers the period. Day 1 is the day after. (Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(a), read October 11, 2026.)
2. Every day counts, weekends and holidays included, until the last day (Rule 6(a)(1)(B)).
3. A last day on a Saturday, a Sunday or a legal holiday moves. For a period counted after an event it runs to the next day that is none of those (Rule 6(a)(1)(C)). For a period counted before an event, such as the Rule 26(f) conference held at least 21 days before the scheduling conference, the next day is counted the other way: Rule 6(a)(5) says continuing to count forward when the period is measured after an event and backward when measured before an event, so the last day moves earlier.
4. Legal holiday means the federal legal holidays named in Rule 6(a)(6)(A) (the eleven of 5 U.S.C. 6103(a), with a Saturday holiday observed the Friday before and a Sunday holiday the Monday after), any day the President or Congress declares a holiday (6(a)(6)(B)), and, for periods that are measured after an event, any other day declared a holiday by the state where the district court is located (6(a)(6)(C)). This calculator applies the first group only; see the limits below.
5. Service by mail adds 3 days. When a paper was served by mail, by leaving it with the clerk, or by other means the party consented to in writing (Rule 5(b)(2)(C), (D) or (F)), 3 days are added after the period would otherwise expire under Rule 6(a). The 3 days are counted after the Rule 6(a) date, and a third day that lands on a weekend or holiday moves to the next day that is not one (the 2005 committee note's method). Electronic service and personal service add nothing. The calculator asks how the paper was served only for the events that are a served paper under Rule 5; a summons is served under Rule 4, so the answer to a complaint gets no added days.
6. Appeals count the same way. Appellate Rule 26(a) says to exclude the day of the event that triggers the period (Fed. R. App. P. 26(a), read October 11, 2026).

The counting engine is the same one Volta Deadlines uses; it is checked against 22 hand-worked cases from the rules and their committee notes (a Saturday, a holiday, the observed Friday of a Saturday holiday counted forward and backward, a year end, the three Rule 6(d) patterns) and against OPM's published holiday schedules, date for date, before it ships.

What it does not do

• No state or local rules. It counts the federal rules named above and nothing else. A district's local rules, a judge's standing order, a scheduling order or a stipulation can set another time, and those control.
• No state holidays and no declared days. Rule 6(a)(6)(C) counts the holidays of the state where the district court sits for a period measured after an event, and 6(a)(6)(B) counts any day the President or Congress declares a holiday. Neither is in this table. If one falls on a last day, the real deadline is later than the date shown; for a period counted backward a declared day could make it earlier.
• No clerk's-office closures. Rule 6(a)(3) extends a period when the clerk's office is inaccessible on the last day. The calculator cannot know that.
• Periods in hours, and times of day. Rule 6(a)(2) and 6(a)(4) are not applied; every count here is in days, and a day ends at midnight in the court's time zone.
• Statutes and motions that change the time. A federal statute (Rule 12(a) opens with one), a Rule 12 motion (Rule 12(a)(4)), a timely post-judgment motion (Appellate Rule 4(a)(4)) and an extension granted under Rule 6(b) all change the dates. The notes beside each rule say where that happens; the calculator does not apply them for you.
• 2026 through 2029 only. The federal holiday table ends on December 31, 2029. A count that runs past it is refused, never guessed.

The federal legal holidays it uses

The eleven holidays of 5 U.S.C. 6103(a), with a Saturday holiday observed on the Friday before (6103(b)(1)) and a Sunday holiday on the Monday after (Executive Order 11582, section 3(a)), for 2026 through 2029: 44 days, checked date for date against the schedules the U.S. Office of Personnel Management publishes (read October 11, 2026). Where the observed day differs from the holiday's own date, both are shown.

Sources: 5 U.S.C. 6103 (read October 11, 2026) and OPM, Federal Holidays.

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