Civil litigation
Opposition and Reply Brief Deadlines in Federal Court
Opposition and reply periods come from local rules and judges' orders. Load the S.D.N.Y. or N.D. Cal. period, edit the days for your court and calculate.
The working answer
Opposition and reply deadlines in federal court come from the district's local rules and the judge's orders, and Rule 6(a) supplies the counting. In the Southern District of New York, Local Civil Rule 6.1(b) gives 14 days to oppose and 7 to reply; in the Northern District of California, Civil L.R. 7-3 gives 14 and 7. The calculator is loaded with 14 days and edits to any period.
Deadline calculator: S.D.N.Y. Local Civil Rule 6.1(b) and N.D. Cal. Civil L.R. 7-3(a)
Loaded with the 14-day period from S.D.N.Y. Local Civil Rule 6.1(b) and N.D. Cal. Civil L.R. 7-3(a). Enter the date the moving papers were served or filed; the period stays editable for an order or stipulation that sets a different one. Intermediate weekends count; the final day moves when required.
The statutory federal holidays are included. Standard observed closures apply when selected above. Confirm the district’s holiday and closure calendar and add relevant local dates. Review the triggering rule and any scheduling order alongside the result.
Read Rule 6 — Cornell LII01 / PRACTICE NOTES
Rule 6(a) counts the days; the local rule or the judge supplies them.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure do not set one period for opposing a motion. Rule 6(a) applies to any time period specified in the rules, in any local rule or court order, or in any statute that does not specify a method of computing time, so the counting method is uniform even when the number of days varies by court. Start with the district's local rules, then read the assigned judge's individual practices, which can set a different schedule.
Rule 6(c)(1) sets the default timing for the motion itself: a written motion and notice of the hearing must be served at least 14 days before the time specified for the hearing, with exceptions for ex parte motions, for different times set by the rules, and for different times set by court order. Rule 56(b) allows a summary judgment motion at any time until 30 days after the close of all discovery, unless a local rule or the court sets a different time.
The two examples in the calculator are published local rules. Other districts publish their own numbers, so enter the period from your court's rule or the scheduling order and keep the source with the task.
02 / PRACTICE NOTES
Southern District of New York: 14 and 7 days, and 7 and 2 for discovery motions.
Local Civil Rule 6.1(b) of the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York provides that, on civil motions other than the motions described in Rule 6.1(a) and petitions for writs of habeas corpus, opposing or response papers are served within 14 days after service of the moving papers, and reply papers within seven days after service of the answering papers. The rule directs the reader to Fed. R. Civ. P. 6 for computing periods of days.
Local Civil Rule 6.1(a) shortens the schedule for motions and applications under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26 through 37 and 45(d)(3): opposing or response papers within seven days after service of the moving papers, and reply papers within two days after service of the answering papers. The rule opens with the qualifier that a statute, rule, the judge's individual practices or a direction in a particular case can provide otherwise.
A worked count: moving papers served by hand or through the court's electronic-filing system on Monday, November 16, 2026 put the opposition due Monday, November 30, 2026. If the opposition is served that day, the reply under Rule 6.1(b) falls on Monday, December 7, 2026. If the moving papers were served by mail, Rule 6(d) adds three days after the 14 days expire, which makes the opposition date Thursday, December 3, 2026.
03 / PRACTICE NOTES
Northern District of California: 14 days from filing, 7 from the opposition due date.
Civil L.R. 7-3(a) of the Northern District of California requires the opposition to be filed and served not more than 14 days after the motion was filed, and states that Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(d) does not apply to that deadline. Civil L.R. 7-3(c) requires the reply to be filed and served not more than 7 days after the opposition was due, again without the Rule 6(d) extension.
The reply period therefore runs from the date the opposition was due. A motion filed Tuesday, December 1, 2026 puts the opposition due Tuesday, December 15, 2026, and the reply due Tuesday, December 22, 2026. The calculator reaches the reply date when you enter December 15, 2026 and 7 days.
The contrast with the Southern District shows why the trigger deserves a line in the case notes: one rule counts from service, the other from filing, and a rule that counts from filing leaves the mail-service extension out.
04 / PRACTICE NOTES
A short routine for any district.
Four entries make an opposition date reliable, and each takes a minute with the documents open.
- Read the district's local rule on motion practice and the judge's individual practices or standing order.
- Record whether the period runs from filing, from service or from the opposition due date.
- Enter the trigger date and the number of days in the calculator, and add state holidays and any closure.
- Calendar the opposition and the reply as separate tasks, each with the rule and the trigger written in the task.
05 / PRACTICE NOTES
RuleX keeps the response deadline in the case, next to its source.
Create the case in RuleX, add a task for the opposition brief with the calculated due date, and attach the motion papers, the local rule page and the judge's order. The case log records the rule, the trigger date and the holidays you applied, so every lawyer on the matter reads the same calculation and can reopen the source behind it.
Ask RuleX to read the motion and the record together and draft the opposition brief in Word, with record citations placed in the text. Research, drafting and the calendar date live in one case file with the documents, and the 7-day free trial lets you set up your first matter today.
Frequently asked questions
How many days do I have to oppose a motion in federal court?
The local rules and the judge's orders set the period. The Southern District of New York gives 14 days after service of the moving papers under Local Civil Rule 6.1(b), and the Northern District of California gives 14 days after the motion was filed under Civil L.R. 7-3(a).
How long do I have to file a reply brief?
Under S.D.N.Y. Local Civil Rule 6.1(b), reply papers are due seven days after service of the answering papers. Under N.D. Cal. Civil L.R. 7-3(c), the reply is due not more than 7 days after the opposition was due.
Does the three-day mail extension apply to local-rule deadlines?
Rule 6(d) applies to a period that runs from service made by mail, by leaving the paper with the clerk or by other consented means. The Northern District of California states that Rule 6(d) does not extend its opposition and reply deadlines, which run from filing.
What are the response times for discovery motions in the Southern District of New York?
Under Local Civil Rule 6.1(a), opposing papers on motions under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26 through 37 and 45(d)(3) are served within seven days after service of the moving papers, and reply papers within two days after service of the answering papers.
Can a judge set a different briefing schedule?
The judge's individual practices or a direction in a particular case can set a different schedule, and Rule 6(a) counts the days in any court order.
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