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Practice Tools · New Jersey

NJ Motion Calendar NJ Motion Deadlines

Pick a motion type and return date. This tool calculates the moving, opposition, and reply deadlines under the current New Jersey Court Rules. Pick what kind of motion and when it's returnable. You get back the deadlines for filing, opposing, and replying.

Read this first. This tool applies statewide default rules only. It does not account for local vicinage practices, judge-specific case management orders, previously granted extensions, or court closures. Always verify against your case management order and the current NJ Rules of Court. General information, not legal advice.
Deadline Calculator
Regular civil motion
R. 1:6-3(a)  ·  16 / 8 / 4 days
Motion for Summary Judgment
R. 4:46-1  ·  28 / 10 / 4 days
Federal D.N.J. motion
L. Civ. R. 7.1 / 78.1  ·  24 / 14 / 7 days
NJ state civil motion days are Fridays under the Supreme Court's annual order. Federal D.N.J. motion days are set by the court.
Heads up. The date you picked is not a Friday. NJ state civil motion days are typically Fridays. If your judge has approved a different return day, ignore this. Otherwise pick the nearest Friday.
Deadlines (backward from return date)
How this works

The rule underneath the numbers. Where these numbers come from.

New Jersey civil motions run on a statewide return-date system. Motion days are set annually by the Supreme Court (currently Fridays for most Law Division civil work). Every deadline counts backward from the chosen return date under R. 1:6-3.

Regular civil motions. R. 1:6-3(a) requires moving papers to be filed and served not later than 16 days before the return date. Opposition and any cross-motion are due not later than 8 days before. Reply papers are due not later than 4 days before.

Summary judgment. R. 4:46-1 gives MSJs a longer runway: served and filed not later than 28 days before the return date. Under R. 4:46-2, opposition must be served and filed not later than 10 days before the return date. Reply papers follow the general 4-day rule.

Federal D.N.J. Local Civil Rule 7.1 and 78.1 set 24 days for the moving papers, 14 days for opposition, and 7 days for reply, with motion days fixed by the Clerk. The mechanics look similar to state practice but the day counts and default oral-argument rules differ.

Weekend and holiday adjustment. R. 1:3-1 governs the computation of time. When a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, this tool flags it. Practitioners generally file by the last business day before the calculated deadline for backward-counted dates.

NJ civil motions work on a fixed return-date system statewide. The Supreme Court sets motion days each year (right now, Fridays for most civil cases). Every other deadline counts backward from whatever return date you pick, per R. 1:6-3.

Regular motions. 16 days out for the moving papers. 8 days out for the opposition. 4 days out for the reply.

MSJs. More time. 28 days for the moving papers, 10 for the opposition, 4 for the reply.

Federal court in NJ. Different numbers: 24 / 14 / 7. Motion days are set by the court, not you.

Weekends and holidays. If the calculated date lands on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, this tool tells you. Most people file by the business day before.

What about Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania does not have a unified motion calendar. PA doesn't have one of these.

Unlike New Jersey, Pennsylvania has no statewide motion day system. Its 67 counties each maintain their own local rules under Pa.R.J.A. 103(d) and Pa.R.C.P. 239. Motion practice can look quite different from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to Bucks County.

Statewide rules exist. Pa.R.C.P. 208.1 through 208.4 govern general motion practice, and Pa.R.C.P. 1035.1 through 1035.5 govern summary judgment. But actual scheduling, response times, praecipe requirements, and courtroom procedures are set at the county level. A single calculator that works statewide is not possible without picking a county first.

For matters in a specific Pennsylvania county, consult that county's local rules directly. The most commonly referenced:

When your judge has issued a case management or scheduling order, that order controls over local rules for your specific case.

Unlike NJ, PA doesn't have a statewide system for motion deadlines. Each of PA's 67 counties runs its own show under its own local rules.

There are statewide rules (Pa.R.C.P. 208 series for motions, 1035 series for MSJs), but scheduling and response times are county by county. Philadelphia is different from Pittsburgh which is different from Bucks County. A single tool can't cover them all without picking a county first.

If your matter is in a specific PA county, look up their local rules directly. Big ones:

And when a judge has issued a scheduling order in your case, that order beats the local rules.

Important limits

What this tool does not do.

These are the situations where the calculator's numbers will be wrong or incomplete. Always cross-check against your case's actual paperwork.

  • Case management or scheduling orders that impose different deadlines
  • Vicinage-specific local practice (different Law Division dates, family, tax)
  • Motions filed under R. 5:5-4 (family) or R. 6:3-3 (Special Civil Part)
  • Emergent applications, orders to show cause, and ex parte motions
  • Extensions previously granted by the court or agreed by consent
  • Federal holidays and court-specific closures that shift deadlines
  • Any deadline in Pennsylvania state court