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Court staff opposes extending civil answer deadline from 21 days; bill paused for further amendment
Summary
Representative Laurie Van Winkle proposed extending the statutory deadline to answer civil complaints; State Court Administrator's Office staff and court officials opposed a large increase and recommended keeping the rule‑based 21‑day deadline. Committee discussion produced competing amendment proposals but no final committee vote.
Representative Laurie Van Winkle introduced House Bill 1405, which would change time limitations for serving an answer to a civil claim. Van Winkle said the current 21‑day timeline leaves many defendants — particularly self‑represented people — with inadequate time to find counsel and prepare a response. She said her intent was to give defendants more time and that the draft had been edited by counsel, producing different proposed time frames (45 or 60 days) than she intended.
Sarah Behrens, a staff attorney with the State Court Administrator's Office, testified in opposition. She told the committee that the 21‑day deadline is established in Rule 12 of the North…
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