Requests for Admission: The Deadline With Teeth
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.
Responses to requests for admission are due 30 days after service under Code of Civil Procedure section 2033.250. Every written discovery deadline in California matters, but this one is different, because the penalty for blowing it is the worst in the discovery act.
Why RFAs are the most dangerous deadline in discovery
Miss the deadline on interrogatories and you waive objections. Miss the deadline on RFAs and the propounding party can move to have every request deemed admitted (CCP section 2033.280). Deemed admissions are established facts for the entire case. Lawyers have lost summary judgment, and whole cases, on facts nobody actually agreed to, because a response was served late.
There is one escape hatch: if you serve substantially compliant proposed responses before the hearing on the deemed admitted motion, the court must deny the motion. You will almost certainly pay sanctions anyway, and you will have spent a very bad week getting there.
Calculating the real due date
Start at 30 days from service. Electronic service adds 2 court days, mail within California adds 5 calendar days, out-of-state mail adds 10, international adds 20, and overnight delivery adds 2 court days. Weekend or court holiday on the last day pushes the deadline to the next court day. California court holidays include a few that catch people off guard, like Farmworkers Day at the end of March and the day after Thanksgiving.
Your dates
Example: requests for admission served Nov 20, 2026, mailed in California
MON
Monday, December 28, 2026
115 days from today- 30 daysCCP § 2033.250(a)
- +5 calendar daysCCP § 1013
- Christmas, FRI Dec 25, 2026CCP § 12a
- Dec 28, 2026
Rules read against the code 2026-08-17
Enter your dates and the example above is replaced by your result.
FAQ
The responses were one day late. Is everything admitted automatically?
No. Admissions are not automatic; the propounding party has to bring a motion. Serve substantially compliant responses immediately, before any hearing, and the motion must be denied. Expect sanctions.
Do RFA responses need verification?
Yes. An unverified RFA response is treated as no response, which walks you straight into deemed admitted territory.
Can deemed admissions be withdrawn later?
Sometimes, by motion under CCP section 2033.300, on a showing of mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect. Courts have discretion, which means no guarantees.
Save this to a matter
Sign in with an email link, no password, and keep every deadline for a case in one place with reminders before each one. The calculators stay free with no account. Sign in
Related: Interrogatory response deadlines · RFP response deadlines · Deposition deadlines · Records subpoena deadlines · Trial countdown calculator