If a defendant serves a motion to dismiss before a responsive pleading, the time to respond is extended until ten days after service of the notice of entry of the order determining such motion. This extension refers to which of the following?

• A. Ten days after service of the order of filing
• B. Ten days after service of the notice of entry of the order
• C. Twenty days after service of the motion
• D. Thirty days after service of the motion

Answer: (B)

When a defendant serves a motion to dismiss before an answer is filed, the deadline to respond to the complaint is put on hold and then reset. The new deadline starts only after the court has decided the motion and the party has been served with the notice of entry of that order. In other words, the time to respond is ten days after service of the notice of entry of the order determining the motion.

This ensures you don’t have to rush a responsive pleading while the court is still weighing the motion, and it ties the deadline to the formal entry of the order so the date is clear and enforceable. For example, once the order is issued and the notice of entry is served, you have ten days to serve the responsive pleading.

The other options don’t fit because they base the extension on the motion itself or on the order alone, rather than on the notice of entry of the order deciding the motion. The rule specifically uses ten days after service of the notice of entry of the order.