When Is a Demurrer Due in California?
Not legal advice. Rules checked against the code on August 20, 2026. Verify every date yourself. Read the full disclaimer
Core CCP rules were checked against Westlaw (via CoCounsel legal research) on August 20, 2026. County local rules are paraphrased summaries; individual department standing orders are NOT included. Verify every date against the operative code sections and your court’s rules before relying on it. Using this site creates no attorney-client relationship.
30 calendar days from service of the complaint, extended by the method of service. CCP § 430.40(a)
What catches people out: The 30 days runs from when service was complete, not from the day the papers arrived, and substituted service is not complete until the 10th day after the follow-up mailing.
A demurrer is due within 30 days after service of the complaint or cross-complaint. That is the same 30 days you have to answer, because both run on the time allowed to respond to the pleading, so choosing to demur rather than answer does not buy any additional time by itself.
What does buy time is the meet-and-confer machinery, and it is the most underused provision in this area. If the parties cannot meet and confer at least five days before the responsive pleading is due, the demurring party gets an automatic 30-day extension by filing a declaration saying so on or before the original due date. No court order, no stipulation, no hearing. Three limits are worth committing to memory: the declaration must be filed on or before the original date, the 30 days runs from that original date rather than from the day you file, and any further extension needs a court order on good cause.
The exclusions are narrow and specific. Only unrepresented incarcerated parties and forcible entry, forcible detainer and unlawful detainer proceedings sit outside the meet-and-confer requirement. Limited civil cases are not excluded, which surprises people.
Once the demurrer is filed, the hearing runs on the ordinary motion clock: 16 court days of notice, opposition 9 court days before, reply 5 court days before. Those are court days and they count backward across weekends and court holidays, which is where the arithmetic usually goes wrong.
What the statute does not say on its face
- Meet and confer at least 5 days before the responsive pleading is due, and the automatic 30-day extension, are both in Code Civ. Proc., § 430.41, subd. (a)(2). The extension is automatic on filing the declaration and requires no leave of court; further extensions require a court order for good cause. There is no sunset. Last amended Stats. 2023, ch. 478 (A.B. 1756), § 9, eff. Jan. 1, 2024.
- The only exclusions are in § 430.41(d): unrepresented incarcerated parties, and forcible entry/detainer and unlawful detainer proceedings. Limited civil cases are not excluded.
- The hearing is then noticed under § 1005.
Then the hearing clock starts
Filing on time is half of it. The hearing itself runs on CCP § 1005(b): 16 court days of notice before the hearing, opposition 9 court days before, reply 5 court days before. Electronic service pushes the moving papers to 18 court days. All of it counts backward across weekends and California court holidays, which is where most miscounts happen. The civil motion deadline calculator does both halves at once.
Common questions
How long do you have to file a demurrer in California?
30 calendar days from service of the complaint, under CCP § 430.40(a). Calendar days count weekends and holidays; if the last day lands on one, the deadline rolls to the next court day.
Does the method of service extend the demurrer deadline?
Yes. Service extensions apply to this period, so the date moves depending on whether the triggering papers went out personally, by mail, by overnight delivery or electronically. The calculator applies the right one once you pick the method.
Can the demurrer deadline be extended?
Filing the § 430.41(a)(2) meet-and-confer declaration on or before this date grants an automatic 30-day extension with no court order. Further extensions require a court order for good cause.
When are the opposition and reply due on a demurrer?
Opposition is due 9 court days before the hearing and the reply 5 court days before, under Code of Civil Procedure section 1005(b). Both are court days and both count backward from the hearing across weekends and California court holidays.
What catches people out on the demurrer deadline?
The 30 days runs from when service was complete, not from the day the papers arrived, and substituted service is not complete until the 10th day after the follow-up mailing.
Other motion deadlines
Anti-SLAPP special motion to strikeMotion to strikeMotion to quash service of summonsMotion to compel further responsesMotion for reconsiderationMotion for new trialMotion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict
This deadline was verified against the code on August 17, 2026. Every figure on this page is read from the same rules engine the calculators use, so it cannot disagree with them. See methodology.
Related: Civil motion deadlines · Response to a complaint · California court holidays · How these rules were verified · Keep this date with the case
Rules current as of August 20, 2026 · CCP amendments through January 1, 2025 · engine v1.0.0