Rule 61.Harmless Error

Last verified July 1, 2026

In one sentenceRule 61 tells courts to ignore small errors that did not harm anyone’s case and only to undo a verdict or judgment when an error truly affected a party’s substantial rights.

Full Text of Rule 61

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No error in either the admission or the exclusion of evidence and no error or defect in any ruling or order or in anything done or omitted by the court or by any of the parties is ground for granting a new trial or for setting aside a verdict or for vacating, modifying, or otherwise disturbing a judgment or order, unless refusal to take such action appears to the court inconsistent with substantial justice. The court at every stage of the proceeding must disregard any error or defect in the proceeding which does not affect the substantial rights of the parties.

End

Plain-English Summary

Rule 61 is often called the harmless error rule. It instructs courts not to overturn a verdict, order, or judgment merely because something along the way was not done perfectly. A mistake in admitting or excluding evidence, or some other slip in how the case was handled, is not by itself a reason to grant a new trial or throw out a result.

Instead, the rule asks whether refusing to fix the error would be inconsistent with substantial justice, and it directs courts, at every stage of a case, to disregard errors that do not affect a party’s substantial rights. In practice, this means a party challenging a result has to show the mistake mattered, not merely that a mistake happened.

Frequently Asked Questions

If the judge made an evidentiary mistake at trial, does that automatically mean I get a new trial?

No. Rule 61 says an error in admitting or excluding evidence is not grounds for a new trial unless refusing to act would be inconsistent with substantial justice.

What is the standard for deciding whether an error matters?

The rule asks whether the error affected the substantial rights of the parties; if it did not, the court must disregard it.

Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Committee Comments are reproduced verbatim from the official Minnesota Rules of Civil Procedure (Minn. R. Civ. P. 61). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Minnesota (Minn. Stat. § 480.051). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 1, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: harmless error rule