Rules of Court · Part 1 · New Jersey
R. 1:6-5 New Jersey Rules of Court, R. 1:6-5: Briefs, rendered as code with every cross-reference linked
Briefs
The moving party's brief in support of a motion shall, pursuant to R. 1:6-3, be served and submitted to the court with the moving papers. The respondent shall serve and submit an answering brief at least 8 days before the return date. Except for a brief submitted in support of a dispositive motion or cross-motion, a brief submitted in the Civil Part or the Special Civil Part in support of a motion or cross-motion and any answering brief, exclusive of any tables of contents or authorities, shall not exceed 40 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. A brief submitted in support of a dispositive motion or cross-motion, which includes for purposes of this rule only a motion to dismiss pursuant to R. 4:6-2(e), a motion for summary judgment pursuant to R. 4:46, and a motion for summary judgment pursuant to R. 4:69-2, and any answering brief, exclusive of any tables of contents or authorities, shall not exceed 65 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. A reply brief, if any, shall be served and submitted at least 4 days before the return date. A reply brief shall not exceed 15 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. Prior to the date on which the brief is due to be submitted and served, a party may make an application in writing to the court to file an over-length brief exceeding these limitations, which the court may permit when appropriate in light of the complexity of the issues raised and without awaiting a response from any other party concerning the request. No over-length briefs may be submitted without advance permission to do so. Briefs may not be submitted after the time fixed by this rule or by court order, including the pretrial order, without leave of court, which may be applied for ex parte.
Note: Source — R.R. 4:5-5(b) (first sentence), 4:5-10(a)(b)(c)(e); paragraph (a) amended July 16, 1979 to be effective September 10, 1979; paragraphs (a) and (b) amended July 13, 1994 to be effective September 1, 1994; amended July 10, 1998 to be effective September 1, 1998; amended July 5, 2000 to be effective September 5, 2000; amended August 1, 2016 to be effective September 1, 2016; amended May 15, 2018 to be effective immediately.
Verbatim rule text, unmarked. Nothing here is a summary.
rule 1:6-5 "Briefs" {
The moving party's brief in support of a motion shall, pursuant to R. 1:6-3, be served and submitted to the court with the moving papers. The respondent shall serve and submit an answering brief at least 8 days before the return date. Except for a brief submitted in support of a dispositive motion or cross-motion, a brief submitted in the Civil Part or the Special Civil Part in support of a motion or cross-motion and any answering brief, exclusive of any tables of contents or authorities, shall not exceed 40 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. A brief submitted in support of a dispositive motion or cross-motion, which includes for purposes of this rule only a motion to dismiss pursuant to R. 4:6-2(e), a motion for summary judgment pursuant to R. 4:46, and a motion for summary judgment pursuant to R. 4:69-2, and any answering brief, exclusive of any tables of contents or authorities, shall not exceed 65 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. A reply brief, if any, shall be served and submitted at least 4 days before the return date. A reply brief shall not exceed 15 pages, with each page containing no more than 26 double-spaced lines of no more than 65 characters including spaces, and in no smaller than 10-pitch or 12-point type. Prior to the date on which the brief is due to be submitted and served, a party may make an application in writing to the court to file an over-length brief exceeding these limitations, which the court may permit when appropriate in light of the complexity of the issues raised and without awaiting a response from any other party concerning the request. No over-length briefs may be submitted without advance permission to do so. Briefs may not be submitted after the time fixed by this rule or by court order, including the pretrial order, without leave of court, which may be applied for ex parte.
Note: Source — R.R. 4:5-5(b) (first sentence), 4:5-10(a)(b)(c)(e); paragraph (a) amended July 16, 1979 to be effective September 10, 1979; paragraphs (a) and (b) amended July 13, 1994 to be effective September 1, 1994; amended July 10, 1998 to be effective September 1, 1998; amended July 5, 2000 to be effective September 5, 2000; amended August 1, 2016 to be effective September 1, 2016; amended May 15, 2018 to be effective immediately.
}
referenced_by: 1:5-6, 4:105-6, 4:25-8
source: njcourts.gov // verbatim; changed 2025-09-23; corpus harvested 2026-09-02← R. 1:6-4 · R. 1:6-6 → · chapter 1:6 · all rules
The Rules of Court are a government edict and carry no copyright; the text above is the Judiciary’s own publication, unchanged. Structure, links and highlighting are ours and carry no legal weight. Read the rule on njcourts.gov before you rely on it; amendments take effect each September 1.