A petition for reconsideration asks the same court or agency that issued a ruling to take a second look and fix a specific error. In federal civil court, you usually have 28 days from the entry of judgment to file one under Rule 59(e); miss that window and your request gets treated under Rule 60(b), which carries different standards and does not protect your appeal rights the same way.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59 – New Trial; Altering or Amending a Judgment Administrative agencies run their own clocks, often shorter. The procedural details matter more here than in most filings, because the wrong label or a missed date can cost you both the reconsideration and the appeal.
Which Rule Your Motion Falls Under
Federal courts don’t have a procedural rule actually called “motion for reconsideration.” When you file one, the court sorts it into a rule based on timing and what you’re asking for. A request filed within 28 days of judgment is treated as a motion to alter or amend under Rule 59(e).1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59 – New Trial; Altering or Amending a Judgment After that window closes, it falls under Rule 60(b), which reaches a broader set of circumstances but carries different consequences for your appeal timeline.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief From a Judgment or Order
This classification is automatic. You don’t choose the rule by labeling your motion. The distinction matters because the two rules carry different deadlines, different grounds, and different effects on your right to appeal.
Rulings that come down mid-case are different. Discovery orders, dismissals of a single count, pretrial evidentiary rulings — anything that doesn’t resolve all claims against all parties — can be revised at any time before final judgment under Rule 54(b).3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54 – Judgment; Costs The 28-day clock does not apply to these interlocutory orders. In practice, though, judges won’t revisit the same ruling repeatedly just because a party keeps losing on it. Most courts apply a “law of the case” principle and will reopen an interlocutory ruling only when something has genuinely changed: new evidence, a new appellate decision, or an error the court itself wants to correct.
Grounds That Actually Work
Courts grant these motions sparingly. The standard isn’t disagreement with the outcome. It’s that something went materially wrong the first time. Rule 59(e) recognizes four grounds:
- A change in controlling law — a new appellate ruling or statute that altered the legal picture after the court decided.
- Newly available evidence that was genuinely unavailable during the original proceedings despite reasonable effort. A document you forgot about doesn’t qualify.
- A clear error of law or fact — the court misapplied a statute, ignored binding precedent, or relied on facts the record plainly contradicts.
- Manifest injustice, meaning enforcing the decision as-is would produce a result so unfair it undermines confidence in the legal system.
Rule 60(b) covers additional situations that tend to emerge later: fraud by the opposing party, a judgment already satisfied, and judgments that are void due to a jurisdictional defect.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief From a Judgment or Order
Judges set the bar deliberately high. Reconsideration catches genuine mistakes; it is not a second chance to argue the same points more persuasively. A motion that rehashes rejected arguments draws a quick denial. If the court calculated damages at $50,000 but the applicable statutory cap was $25,000, that is the kind of concrete, identifiable error worth raising. Vague assertions that the judge got it wrong go nowhere.
Deadlines by Rule and Setting
The deadlines are strict and missing one is usually fatal:
- Rule 59(e): 28 days from entry of judgment. No extensions. Treated as jurisdictional in many circuits.1Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59 – New Trial; Altering or Amending a Judgment
- Rule 60(b)(1)–(3), covering mistake, newly discovered evidence, and fraud: within a “reasonable time” and no more than one year after judgment.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief From a Judgment or Order
- Rule 60(b)(4)–(6), covering void judgments, satisfied judgments, and “extraordinary circumstances”: within a “reasonable time,” with no hard outer limit.2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief From a Judgment or Order
- Interlocutory orders under Rule 54(b): no fixed deadline. You can ask any time before final judgment.3Legal Information Institute. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54 – Judgment; Costs
Agencies run on their own clocks. The Social Security Administration gives you 60 days from the date you receive a decision to request reconsideration.4Social Security Administration. Request Reconsideration Other agencies impose windows as short as 10 days. Always check the specific rules of the body that issued the decision.
The Appeal-Rights Trap
This is where people lose cases they shouldn’t. A timely Rule 59(e) motion resets the appeal clock. Under the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, the 30-day window to file a notice of appeal doesn’t start running until the court disposes of the last pending Rule 59 motion.5Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 4 – Appeal as of Right, When Taken A notice of appeal filed while the Rule 59 motion is still pending sits in limbo and takes effect only when the court rules on the motion.
A Rule 60(b) motion filed within the 28-day Rule 59 window also resets the appeal clock.5Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 4 – Appeal as of Right, When Taken A Rule 60(b) motion filed after that window does not. The judgment stays final, the appeal clock keeps running, and if the 30-day appeal deadline passes while you’re waiting for the court to rule on a late Rule 60 motion, you have forfeited the appeal entirely. Rule 60 itself is explicit: the motion “does not affect the judgment’s finality or suspend its operation.”2Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief From a Judgment or Order
When you’re weighing both reconsideration and appeal, the safe sequence is a timely Rule 59(e) motion and, if denied, a notice of appeal within 30 days of the denial. Using a late Rule 60 motion as a substitute for an appeal rarely works.
What Belongs in the Petition
Open with the basic identifiers: case name, docket number, and the date of the order you’re challenging. The core of the document is a concise statement of the specific error. Not a general narrative about why the outcome felt unfair, but a pinpointed explanation tying the mistake to a particular finding, calculation, or legal conclusion. Reference specific page numbers and line items from the court’s written order or hearing transcript so the judge can go straight to the point of contention.
If you are raising new evidence, attach it as a numbered exhibit and explain in the motion why it wasn’t available earlier. For financial errors, include a corrected calculation showing exactly where the numbers diverge. Witness affidavits should be signed and notarized. Leaving these supporting documents out is one of the fastest ways to get a petition rejected on procedural grounds.
Local court rules impose formatting requirements that vary by jurisdiction. Federal appellate motions are capped at 5,200 words for computer-generated filings and require double-spacing on 8½-by-11-inch paper with one-inch margins.6Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 27 – Motions Trial and state courts set their own page or word limits. Check the local rules before drafting.
Filing, Serving, and What Happens Next
Most federal courts and many state courts require electronic filing through their online portals, which generate a timestamped receipt the moment you submit. Where e-filing isn’t available, deliver hard copies to the clerk’s office in person or by mail. Filing fees vary. Many federal district courts do not charge a separate fee for post-judgment motions, while some state courts charge $15 to $60. Check your court’s fee schedule before submitting.
You also have to serve copies of the complete filing on every other party in the case. The opposing party and any attorney of record gets everything: the motion plus every exhibit. Proof of service — a signed certificate confirming delivery by mail, hand delivery, or electronic means — gets filed alongside the petition. Skip this step and the court can reject the filing outright, regardless of its merits.
Given how tight the deadlines are, waiting until the last day is risky. Electronic systems crash, clerks’ offices close early, and mail doesn’t always arrive on time. Build in a few days of cushion.
Once the petition is filed, the opposing party gets a set period to respond, typically 14 to 21 days under local rules. The judge then reviews both sides’ arguments. The review can take a few weeks or several months depending on complexity and the court’s workload. Some judges set oral argument; many decide on the papers alone.
The original judgment stays enforceable while the petition is pending. Filing does not automatically pause anything. If you need to stop enforcement — to prevent a wage garnishment or the sale of property, for instance — you have to separately request a stay of the judgment.7Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 18 – Stay Pending Review Courts grant stays when the petitioner shows a likelihood of success on the merits and a risk of irreparable harm. Expect to post a bond or provide other security.
If the court grants the petition, it may modify the original order, vacate the judgment, or set a new hearing. If the court denies it, you can proceed to appeal, and that appeal deadline runs from the date of denial when you filed under Rule 59(e).5Legal Information Institute. Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 4 – Appeal as of Right, When Taken Most courts will not entertain a second motion for reconsideration of the same order. Treat the first one as your only shot.
The Cost of a Weak Filing
A petition that rehashes losing arguments or that’s designed to delay enforcement carries real financial risk. Under Rule 11, every motion an attorney or party signs certifies that it is grounded in fact, supported by existing law or a good-faith argument for changing the law, and not filed for an improper purpose such as harassment or delay.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 – Signing of Pleadings, Motions, and Other Papers; Sanctions A court that finds a motion violates this standard can order the filer to pay the opposing party’s reasonable attorney’s fees and expenses.
A separate federal statute lets courts hold attorneys personally liable for excess costs when they multiply proceedings unreasonably and vexatiously.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1927 – Counsel’s Liability for Excessive Costs A frivolous petition for reconsideration doesn’t just fail. It can make the case more expensive than if you’d done nothing.
Reconsideration Before Federal Agencies
Petitions for reconsideration aren’t limited to courts. Several federal agencies run their own reconsideration processes, and these are often the more common entry point for people without attorneys.
Social Security Administration
If the SSA denies your initial disability or benefits application, reconsideration is the first step in the appeals process. You have 60 days from the date you receive the decision to submit your request.4Social Security Administration. Request Reconsideration A different examiner, not the one who made the original decision, reviews the case from scratch, including any new evidence you submit. The review typically takes four to twelve weeks. If reconsideration is denied, the next step is a hearing before an administrative law judge.
Immigration Decisions
USCIS allows you to file a motion to reconsider an unfavorable decision, asking the same office that denied the case to review it again. This option exists even when a case isn’t eligible for a formal appeal to a higher body like the Administrative Appeals Office or the Board of Immigration Appeals.10U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Questions and Answers: Appeals and Motions A motion to reconsider must show the decision rested on an incorrect application of law or policy and must cite the relevant authority. USCIS also recognizes motions to reopen, which rest on new facts rather than legal error, mirroring the court system’s split between correcting legal mistakes and introducing new evidence.
Workers’ Compensation and Other Agencies
Workers’ compensation systems, environmental agencies, and other administrative bodies each have their own reconsideration procedures, typically governed by agency-specific regulations. Deadlines range from as few as 10 days to 60 days depending on the agency. The standard is generally the same: point to a specific legal error, new evidence, or changed circumstances rather than simply re-arguing the position. Check the denial notice itself — agencies are usually required to tell you what your appeal options are and how long you have to use them.