Also known as: good cause · excusable neglect · FRCP 6(b) · FRCP 60(b)
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A judicial standard that permits a court to excuse a party's failure to meet a procedural deadline or requirement when the failure stems from mistake, inadvertence, or other reasonable grounds that justify relief from the default.
Granite Holdings served interrogatories on Gable Construction. Gable Construction responded with answers but omitted specific objections to two questions until after the thirty-day deadline. The court excused the untimeliness because counsel had been hospitalized and the grounds for objection were promptly supplied once discovered.
George Garcia was indicted and entered a not guilty plea. His counsel filed a written notice of intent to rely on a mental-disease defense twelve days later, after new hospitalization records arrived. The court permitted the late filing because the records had only recently become available and the delay was not tactical.
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Grace Gupta offered a witness statement under the residual exception during trial. She had not given the required pre-trial written notice because the statement surfaced only the night before. The court excused the lack of earlier notice after finding the proponent had acted promptly once the statement was obtained.
Grove Manufacturing noticed a deposition for a key employee in another state. The deponent's sudden medical emergency made the date impossible. On the receiving party's motion the court rescheduled the deposition to a later week after finding the emergency supplied good cause for the change.
Gary Goldman, a solo practitioner, was appointed to represent an indigent defendant in a complex felony case. He sought to decline the appointment because the case would require extensive travel and conflict with existing trial commitments. The court denied the request after concluding that the burdens did not rise to the level of good cause under the appointment rule.
Giselle Guerrero agreed to represent a client in an ongoing divorce proceeding. After several months the client could no longer pay and the matter grew more complex. The lawyer moved to withdraw solely on the ground that continued representation had become unprofitable. The court denied the motion because withdrawal would leave the client without counsel at a critical stage and no other good cause was shown.
Excusable neglect focuses on the reason for a party's failure to act, such as a misrouted electronic notice despite reasonable office procedures. Good cause is a broader equitable standard used in scheduling and discovery rules to justify extensions or modifications when circumstances warrant relief from a deadline.
Yes. Under Model Penal Code § 4.03(2) a court may permit a late written notice of intent to rely on a mental-disease defense when the defendant shows good cause, such as newly obtained hospitalization records that were not available earlier.
Yes. When a court has previously warned counsel about the risks of the electronic system, failure to confirm receipt of a notice routed to spam is ordinarily not excusable even if the misrouting was inadvertent.
A party must demonstrate that an unforeseen circumstance, such as a witness's sudden medical emergency, makes the original date impossible and that the requested change is reasonable under the circumstances.
…to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b), which authorizes courts to relieve parties from a final judgment for grounds such as excusable neglect, newly discovered evidence, fraud, or "any other reason justifying relief . . . ." We see little resemblance. Rule 60(b), which authorizes discretionary judicial revision of judgments in…