Rule 1-006.Time
Last amended December 31, 2024 · Last verified June 26, 2026
Full Text of Rule 1-006
Rule History
[As amended, effective January 1, 1987; August 1, 1989; January 1, 1995; as amended by Supreme Court Order No. 14-8300-016, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2014; as amended by Supreme Court Order No. S-1-RCR-2023-00046, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2024.]
Committee Commentary
In 2014, the Joint Committee on Rules of Procedure amended the time computation rules, including Rules 1-006, 2-104, 3-104, 5,104, 6-104, 7-104, 8-104, 10-107, and 12-308 NMRA, and restyled the rules to more closely resemble the federal rules of procedure. See Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 6; Fed. R. Crim. Pro. 45.
The method for computing time periods of ten days or less set forth in Subparagraph (A)(2) of this rule does not apply to any statutory notice that must be given prior to the filing of an action. For example, several provisions of the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act require such notice. See, e.g., NMSA 1978, § 47-8-33(D) (requiring the landlord to give the tenant three days notice prior to terminating a rental agreement for failure to pay rent).
Subparagraph (A)(4) of this rule contemplates that the court may be closed or unavailable for filing due to weather, technological problems, or other circumstances. A person relying on Subparagraph (A)(4) to extend the time for filing a paper should be prepared to demonstrate or affirm that the court was closed or unavailable for filing at the time that the paper was due to be filed under Subparagraph (A)(1), (A)(2), or (A)(3).
[Adopted by Supreme Court Order No. 14-8300-016, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2014.]
Plain-English Summary
This rule is the timekeeper for civil practice. For periods of eleven days or more, you exclude the triggering day, count every calendar day including weekends and holidays, and include the last day—rolling to the next business day if the last day is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. For periods of ten days or less, the same approach applies but intermediate weekends and holidays are skipped, except that the short-period method does not apply to statutory notice required before an action is filed.
The rule also counts periods stated in hours, extends deadlines when the court is closed or unavailable for filing, defines the “last day” (midnight for e-filing, closing time otherwise) and “legal holiday,” and lists the holidays the judiciary observes. A court may extend time for cause—before the deadline with or without motion, or after it on a showing of excusable neglect—but it may not extend the deadlines for certain post-trial and appellate motions except as those rules allow.
Finally, when a party must act within a set time after service and service was by mail, fax, or court-facility delivery, three days are added after the period would otherwise end, counting weekends and holidays and rolling off a final weekend or holiday.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I count a deadline of ten days or less?
Exclude the triggering day, skip intermediate Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, and include the last day—rolling to the next business day if the last day falls on a weekend or holiday.
When are three extra days added?
When you must act within a set time after service and service was made by mail, fax, or deposit at a court-facility location for an attorney. The three added days count weekends and holidays.
Can a court extend a deadline after it has passed?
Yes, on motion, if the party failed to act because of excusable neglect—except for the deadlines in the rules the rule specifically excludes, such as certain post-trial and appellate motions.