Answering a complaint late exposes you to a default and, soon after, a default judgment that can order you to pay everything the plaintiff asked for. The deadline has already passed or is about to, so the question is what happens next and what you can still do. In most cases you can still fight back, but your options narrow quickly once a judge signs a judgment, and they narrow further every week you wait.
The Deadline You Missed
In federal court, a defendant served with a summons and complaint has 21 days to file an answer. If you waived formal service and accepted the complaint by mail instead, the deadline stretches to 60 days from the date the waiver request was sent.1Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12 – Defenses and Objections: When and How Presented State courts set their own deadlines, usually in the 20-to-30-day range depending on your jurisdiction and the method of service.
The clock runs from the date you were served, not the day you got around to opening the envelope. If you were handed a summons on a Tuesday, that Tuesday is day one.
What the Plaintiff Can Do Once You Default
Missing the deadline does not mean the plaintiff automatically wins. The process has two separate steps, and the gap between them is where most of your options live.
Entry of Default
First, the plaintiff asks the court clerk to note in the file that you failed to respond on time. The clerk checks the record, confirms no answer was filed, and enters the default. No judge is involved. It is an administrative flag on your case, not a ruling against you.2Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 55 – Default; Default Judgment You have not lost anything yet, but you are locked out of participating in the case until the default is undone.
Default Judgment
Next the plaintiff seeks the actual court order granting what they asked for. How that happens depends on the type of claim. If the amount owed is fixed and can be calculated from a contract or invoice (called liquidated damages), the clerk can enter judgment without a hearing.2Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 55 – Default; Default Judgment For anything else, the plaintiff must ask a judge to set the amount, and the court may hold an evidentiary hearing where the plaintiff has to prove damages.
If you have appeared in the case in any way before defaulting, the plaintiff must give you at least seven days’ written notice before applying for a default judgment.2Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 55 – Default; Default Judgment An appearance can be as simple as a phone call to the plaintiff’s attorney or any filing with the court. That notice is a short window to act before the judgment becomes final.
What a Default Judgment Lets Them Collect
A default judgment is enforceable. Once it exists, the plaintiff gets real collection tools:
- Wage garnishment. A court order directs your employer to withhold part of each paycheck. Federal law caps garnishment for most consumer debts at 25 percent of your disposable earnings.
- Bank account levy. The plaintiff can freeze and seize money in your bank account. Directly deposited federal benefits like Social Security and veterans’ payments carry protection: banks must shield at least two months’ worth of those deposits before freezing anything.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Can a Debt Collector Take or Garnish My Wages or Benefits?
- Property lien. The plaintiff can record a lien against your real estate, which usually must be paid before you can sell or refinance.
Civil judgments no longer appear on reports from the three major credit bureaus, so a default judgment will not directly drop your credit score. They remain public records, however, and lenders and landlords searching court files will find them.
Setting Aside the Default Before Judgment
If the clerk has entered a default but no judgment has issued, you are in the better of two bad spots. Courts can set aside an entry of default for “good cause.”2Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 55 – Default; Default Judgment That standard is flexible. Judges weigh how quickly you acted once you knew about the default, whether you have a legitimate defense, and whether reopening the case would unfairly harm the plaintiff.
You do not have to show a dramatic emergency caused your delay. Moving promptly after you learned of the problem, having a real defense worth hearing, and showing no prejudice to the plaintiff is usually enough. Courts generally prefer deciding cases on their merits rather than on procedural slips, and that preference works in your favor here.
Setting Aside a Default Judgment
Once a judgment has been entered, the standard rises. You now need relief under the specific grounds for vacating a final judgment.4Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief from a Judgment or Order The common grounds are:
- Mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect. Your failure to respond was a reasonable error, not willful disregard. A serious illness, a clerical mix-up at your attorney’s office, or genuinely never receiving the lawsuit papers can qualify. Forgetting about the case, being too busy, or not being able to afford a lawyer generally does not.
- Newly discovered evidence that could not have been found in time to file an answer.
- Fraud or misrepresentation by the plaintiff in obtaining the judgment.
- A void judgment, meaning the court lacked jurisdiction over you or over the subject matter, which makes the entire judgment legally invalid.
You also have to show a “meritorious defense” — a substantive argument that could actually change the outcome if the case were decided on the facts. Vague assertions that you don’t owe the money will not do it. You need specific facts explaining why the plaintiff’s case is weaker than it looks or why you should win outright.
Attacking Improper Service
One of the strongest challenges to a default judgment is that you were never properly served. The plaintiff bears the burden of proving service followed the rules, and the process server must file an affidavit confirming how, when, and where you were served.5Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4 – Summons
If the plaintiff cut corners by leaving papers with the wrong person, serving an old address, or skipping a method required by state law, the court may never have acquired personal jurisdiction over you. A judgment entered without jurisdiction is void. If you suspect you were improperly served, lead with that argument.
How Long You Have to Act
Speed is not just strategy. Under the federal rules, a motion based on mistake, inadvertence, excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence, or fraud must be filed no more than one year after judgment. Every motion, including those based on void judgments, must also be filed within a “reasonable time.”4Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 60 – Relief from a Judgment or Order
What counts as reasonable depends on the circumstances, but courts have little patience for defendants who learn about a judgment and then sit on their hands. In January 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that even motions to vacate void judgments are subject to the “reasonable time” requirement, overturning the prior approach in most federal circuits that had treated void judgments as attackable at any time. The moment you discover a default or judgment against you, the clock is running.
State courts set their own deadlines, and some are shorter than the federal one-year window. Check the rules of the court where the judgment was entered, because missing the motion deadline effectively makes the default permanent.
How to File the Motion
Procedures vary, but the package of documents is predictable. Prepare them together:
- The motion itself, in writing, clearly identifying which legal ground you rely on and the facts supporting it.
- A sworn declaration or affidavit, signed under penalty of perjury, explaining what happened and why you failed to respond on time. If notarization is required, expect a small fee, typically under $25.
- A proposed answer to the original complaint, ready to be filed if the motion is granted. Courts want to see you are prepared to defend the case immediately rather than buying time.
File everything with the clerk of the court handling the case. Filing fees for motions typically run from roughly $35 to $60 depending on jurisdiction, and most courts offer a fee waiver for people with limited income. After filing, serve copies on the plaintiff or the plaintiff’s attorney; service by mail or electronic filing is often acceptable for motions. The court will then set a hearing where both sides argue to the judge. Come ready to explain the delay, describe your defense, and answer questions about both. If the judge grants the motion, the case resumes as though the default never happened, and the court will set a new deadline for your answer.