US federal district courts
How long do I have to object to a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation or order?
A party normally must serve and file objections to a magistrate judge’s nondispositive order within 14 days after being served with it, and objections to a report and recommendation within 14 days after being served with the recommended disposition. A response to objections is due within 14 days after being served with them.
Calculate my deadline- Period
- 14 calendar days
- Trigger
- Service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections
- Rule
- FRCP 72(b)(2); 28 USC 636(b)(1)
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure amended through 2025
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Calculate your deadline
Enter the date of service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections. See the date, cited rule and counting steps.
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Which date starts the 14-day period?
The period runs from the service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections. The default calculation uses service of a copy of the recommended disposition; other branches use their own trigger.
Count forward from service. Confirm the event on the docket or in the service record before entering a date.
Read Rule 72Within 14 days after being served with a copy of the recommended disposition, a party may serve and file specific written objections to the proposed findings and recommendations.
FRCP 72(b)(2); 28 USC 636(b)(1)
This period runs from service as the rule defines it. Do not substitute the filing date, the day a courtesy copy arrived or the day you first read the paper.
Which date do I enter?How are the 14 calendar days counted?
- Exclude the day of the trigger event.
- Count every following day, including intermediate Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.
- If the last day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, continue to the next day that is not one of those.
Exclude the service day and count 14 calendar days under FRCP 6(a).
FRCP 6(a) carries a final Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday to the next open day. FRCP 6(d) adds three days after service by mail or by other listed non-electronic means.
Rule 6(a) also treats a day on which the clerk’s office is inaccessible as excluded from the last day, and sets the filing cutoff at midnight in the court’s time zone for electronic filing. The national calculation does not confirm those local facts.
Read FRCP 6(a)The calculation gives the ordinary national-rule date. Check relevant holidays, the court’s accessibility and its filing cutoff separately.
Review the filing checklistWhat does a worked calculation look like?
Fictitious example
Assume the service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections on Tuesday, September 1, 2026 (electronic service of the report and recommendation through CM/ECF), with no order, motion, extension or local closure affecting the result. Electronic service does not receive the Rule 6(d) three-day addition. The service date is excluded and 14 calendar days are counted. September 15, 2026 is a Tuesday, so no rollover applies.
| Step | What is counted | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Service | Do not count this day | September 1, 2026 |
| Day 1 | Start counting calendar days | September 2, 2026 |
| Day 14 | Ordinary deadline in this example | September 15, 2026 |
Can an order, motion or extension change the deadline?
- Extensions
- Extendable under FRCP 6(b)(1).
- Orders and local rules
- A scheduling order, stipulation approved by the court, standing order or local rule can set a different period and controls over the national default.
- Failure to object to a nondispositive order waives review of it under Rule 72(a).
- A statute or court order can set a different objection period.
What should I check before filing?
These checks help you review the result. They do not activate a calendar date or certify that the deadline applies.
Common questions
Find answers about when this 14-day period starts, how it is counted, what can change it and how to keep your calculation.
Starting the clock
Does the clock start on the service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections, or when I first learned of it?
The period runs from the service of the order, the report and recommendation, or the objections as the rule defines it, not from the day you read about it, received a courtesy copy or attended a hearing. Use the date shown on the docket or in the service record.
Read Rule 72Do I add three days because the paper was served by mail?
FRCP 6(d) adds three days only after the listed non-electronic methods of service, such as mail. Electronic service through the court’s filing system does not add days. Check how service was actually made before adding anything.
FRCP 6(d)Counting days and filing
Is it 14 calendar days or business days?
Calendar days. Count intermediate weekends and holidays. If the final day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, FRCP 6(a) carries it forward to the next day that is not one of those.
FRCP 6(a)Which time zone and filing cutoff apply?
Under FRCP 6(a)(4), electronic filing ends at midnight in the court’s time zone unless a statute, local rule or court order sets a different time. Paper filing ends when the clerk’s office is scheduled to close. This calculator does not verify either fact.
FRCP 6(a)What if the court is inaccessible on the last day?
FRCP 6(a)(3) extends the period to the first accessible day that is not a weekend or legal holiday when the clerk’s office is inaccessible on the last day. Check the court’s closure notices and orders. A national holiday calculation does not establish an outage or local closure.
FRCP 6(a)Extensions and local rules
Can the court extend this deadline?
Extendable under FRCP 6(b)(1). A request does not itself extend the period, and no discretionary extension is calculated here.
Read Rule 72Do local rules, standing orders or a scheduling order change the date?
They can. Many courts set their own periods by local rule, standing order or case-specific order, and those control over the national default. This calculator gives the national-rule date only; compare it with any order in the case before relying on it.
Choosing the right calculator
Does this calculator decide whether the rule applies to my case?
No. It calculates a period from the date you provide under the cited rule. It does not decide whether the rule governs your filing, whether an exception applies, or whether the filing has merit. Those questions need separate review.
Can I calculate the deadline without an account?
Yes. Enter the trigger date to see the free national-rule calculation, citation, counting steps and warnings. You can add court context after the result. Missing court review keeps the result provisional.
Results, records and your case
What is included in an Evidence Record?
The retained inputs, result, cited rule, calculation working, warnings and review state. The PDF includes a payload digest and retained-data appendix, and the record can be verified against its fingerprint later. It records the calculation, not a guarantee of legal correctness.
Does saving to a case activate the calendar?
Not automatically. Provisional records remain subject to review. A separately labeled manual date does not alter the original calculation.
Official sources and review
The period and the counting method come from different provisions. The official source is the court’s published rules; the reading links open the rule text at the Legal Information Institute.
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| FRCP 72(b)(2); 28 USC 636(b)(1) | Trigger and period |
| FRCP 6(a) | Counting, legal holidays and the last day |
| FRCP 6(d) | Three added days after listed non-electronic service |
Rule record reviewed . Guide sources checked . Next source check .
Published by Deadline Engine. This tool calculates the ordinary period under the cited rule. It does not decide whether the rule applies, obtain an extension or file anything for you.