What is the Deadline for a Defendant's Answer to Avoid a Default Judgment?

George Simons | March 22, 2023

Summary: Deadlines to file an Answer in court range from 14-35 days. Use our deadline calculator to determine your deadline. If you've been sued for a debt, use SoloSuit to respond in just 15 minutes and win your case.

Getting served with a debt collection lawsuit is typically a stress and anxiety-inducing event for many people. Your mind may be inundated with questions and concerns. One of the first questions you may be asking yourself is, “what is the deadline to respond to the debt collector's Complaint?” This page provides valuable information concerning the deadlines in each of the 50 states to file your Answer to a debt collector's Complaint.

You can use our deadline calculator to determine your deadline.

Deadline Calculator

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Select the day you were served.

This calculator is for educational purposes only. It does not factor in weekends or holidays, so your actual deadline may be some days later.

SoloSuit can help file an Answer in all 50 states.

The deadline to respond to the Summons in a debt collection lawsuit varies by state

Generally, most courts give the defendant 20-30 days to respond to Summons for debt collection, but the deadline varies. Below is an overview of the deadline to file an Answer in each of the 50 states.

As you will see, there is no uniform response time. This list does not document the nuances in each state such as certain case types or other factors. Keep in mind that laws are constantly changing, so make sure to double check your Summons document for your deadline.

Deadlines to Respond to Debt Lawsuit in all 50 State
State	Days	Source
Alabama	14 - Small claims cases 30 - Circuit court cases	Alabama Legal Help; Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure
Alaska	20	Alaska Court System Self Help Center
Arizona	20 - Service of Summons happened in Arizona 30 - Service of Summons happened outside of Arizona	Arizona Judicial Branch; CaseText Arizona Rules
Arkansas	30	CaseText Arkansas Rules
California	30 (including weekends and court holidays)	California Judicial Branch
Colorado	21	CaseText Colorado Rules
Connecticut	30	Connecticut Judicial Branch
Delaware	20	Delaware Judicial Branch
District of Columbia	21	DC Courts
Florida	20	CaseText Florida Rules
Georgia	30	Georgia Consumer Protection Division
Hawaii	20	CaseText Hawaii Rules
Idaho	20	Idaho Judicial Branch
Illinois	30	CaseText Illinois Rules
Indiana	20	Indiana Rules of Court
Iowa	20	CaseText Iowa Rules
Kansas	21	Kansas Legislature
Kentucky	20	Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure
Louisiana	15	Louisiana State Legislature
Maine	20	Maine Rules of Civil Procedure
Maryland	30	CaseText Maryland Rules
Massachusetts	20	Mass.gov
Michigan	21	Michigan Rules of Civil Procedure
Minnesota	20	Minnesota Rules of Civil Procedure
Mississippi	30	CaseText Mississippi Rules
Missouri	30	Missouri Judicial Branch
Montana	21	Montana Rules of Civil Procedure
Nebraska	30	Nebraska Judicial Branch
Nevada	20	Supreme Court of Nevada Law Library
New Hampshire	30	New Hampshire Judicial Branch
New Jersey	35	New Hampshire Judicial Branch
New Mexico	30	New Mexico Judicial Branch
New York	20	NYCourts.gov
North Carolina	30	North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure
North Dakota	20 - Small claims cases 21 Regular civil cases	North Dakota Courts District; North Dakota Courts Small Claims
Ohio	28	CaseText Ohio Rules
Oklahoma	20	Justia Oklahoma Rules
Oregon	30	Oregon Courts
Pennsylvania	20	Pennsylvania Code
Rhode Island	20	CaseText Rhode Island Rules
South Carolina	30	South Carolina Legal Services
South Dakota	30	South Dakota Legislature
Tennessee	21	Tennessee Courts
Texas	14 - Justice Court cases 20 - District Court cases	Texas Appleseed
Utah	21	Utah Courts
Vermont	21 - Regular civil cases 30 - Small claims cases	Vermont Law Help
Virginia	21	CaseText Virginia Rules
West Virginia	20 - Self-represented defendants 30 - Defendant is represented by an attorney notifies the court	West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure
Wisconsin	20	Wisconsin State Legislature
Wyoming	20 - Service of Summons happened in Wyoming 30 - Services of Summons happened outside of Wyoming	Wyoming Rules of Civil Procedure

Here's a map depicting the table above, showing the time frame you have to respond to a debt collection lawsuit before losing by default. The darker the color, the quicker you need to respond.

Why You Want to Avoid a Default Judgment

If you fail to file your Answer within the relevant filing deadline, the debt collector will likely file a motion with the court asking it to enter a “default judgment” against you. Once a default judgment is entered, the debt collector is empowered to garnish your wages, seize your property, and even access the funds in your bank accounts. As you can see, this is not what you want to have happen when being pursued by a debt collector. You should take affirmative steps to respond to the Complaint.

SoloSuit makes it easy to avoid a default judgment.

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit makes it easy to respond to a debt collection lawsuit.

How it works: SoloSuit is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your answer. Upon completion, you can either print the completed forms and mail in the hard copies to the courts or you can pay SoloSuit to file it for you and to have an attorney review the document.

Respond with SoloSuit

"First time getting sued by a debt collector and I was searching all over YouTube and ran across SoloSuit, so I decided to buy their services with their attorney reviewed documentation which cost extra but it was well worth it! SoloSuit sent the documentation to the parties and to the court which saved me time from having to go to court and in a few weeks the case got dismissed!" – James

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What is the Deadline for a Defendant's Answer to Avoid a Default Judgment?

Deadline Calculator

Select your state.

Select the day you were served.

Your deadline

The deadline to respond to the Summons in a debt collection lawsuit varies by state

Why You Want to Avoid a Default Judgment

What is SoloSuit?

Respond with SoloSuit

We have answers. Join our community of over 40,000 people.

Important Takeaways on Responding to a Debt Collection Lawsuit

How to answer a summons for debt collection in your state

Guides on how to beat every debt collector

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We have answers.
Join our community of over 40,000 people.

It only takes 15 minutes.
And 50% of our customers' cases have been dismissed in the past.

Not sued yet?
Use our Debt Validation Letter.