The Indiana Rules of Civil Procedure, formally the Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure, govern every step of a civil lawsuit in state court: how you file, how you serve the other side, how you respond, how you exchange evidence, how the case is tried, and how a judgment gets enforced or appealed. Each stage carries its own deadlines. Missing one can end a case regardless of its merits, so the rules are best read as a sequence of gates rather than a single document.
Deadlines to File
The first gate is the statute of limitations. Once it expires, the court will almost certainly dismiss the case no matter how strong the underlying claim. The clock generally starts on the date of the injury or breach, but Indiana recognizes a discovery rule: if the harm was not immediately apparent, the deadline runs from when you knew or should have known about the injury and its cause.
The most common civil deadlines:
- Personal injury and personal property damage: two years from the injury.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 34-11-2-4 – Injury or Forfeiture of Penalty Actions
- Medical malpractice: two years from the act or omission, with children under six given until their eighth birthday.2Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 34-18-7-1 – Limitations Period
- Oral contracts and fraud: six years, which also covers injuries to real property and claims for possession of personal property.3Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 34-11-2-7 – Six Year Limitation
- Contracts for the sale of goods: four years, though parties can agree to shorten this to as little as one year.4Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 26-1-2-725 – Statute of Limitations in Contracts for Sale
- Product liability: two years, with an outer limit of ten years after the product was first delivered to the consumer.
Written contracts that do not involve the sale of goods generally carry a longer window, with the exact length depending on the type of agreement.
Starting the Case
A civil case begins with a complaint. Under Trial Rule 8(A), the complaint must contain a short, plain statement showing that you are entitled to relief, along with a demand for that relief.5Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 8 One notable restriction: complaints seeking personal injury, wrongful death, or punitive damages cannot state a specific dollar amount. The correct court depends on the type of claim, the amount at issue, and venue rules tied to where the events happened or where the parties live.
Expect roughly $185 in initial costs for a standard civil filing. The statutory filing fee is about $157, and sheriff’s service adds another $28.6Indiana State Board of Accounts. 2025 Court Costs and Fees by Case Type Each additional defendant beyond the first costs $10. A jury trial demand in a civil tort or plenary action adds a $75 jury fee, paid by the requesting party. Small claims cases, capped at $10,000, cost $35 to file.7Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 33-28-3-4 – Jurisdiction of Small Claims Docket
Once the complaint is filed, the plaintiff must serve the defendant with a summons and copy of the complaint. Trial Rule 4.1 permits certified or registered mail with return receipt, personal delivery, leaving copies at the defendant’s home, or service on an authorized agent.8Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Trial Rule 4.1 – Summons: Service on Individuals When a defendant cannot be found after a diligent search, has concealed their whereabouts, or has left the state, service by publication is available under Trial Rule 4.13, supported by an affidavit describing the search.9Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Trial Rule 4.13 – Summons: Service by Publication
The Defendant’s 20 Days to Respond
After being served, the defendant has 20 days to file a response. That response can be an answer that addresses each allegation, a motion to dismiss, or both. Ignoring the deadline is where many cases go wrong: failing to respond can result in a default judgment, meaning the plaintiff wins without ever presenting the case in court.
Pleadings and Pretrial Motions
The complaint and answer are the core pleadings. The answer replies point by point, admitting, denying, or claiming insufficient knowledge as to each allegation, and it must meet the same clarity standard as the complaint under Rule 8(A).
The two motions that most often decide cases before trial:
- Motion to dismiss under Trial Rule 12(B). Grounds include lack of subject-matter or personal jurisdiction, improper venue, defective service, or failure to state a claim. If the court dismisses for failure to state a claim, the plaintiff has ten days to amend the complaint.10Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 12
- Motion for summary judgment under Trial Rule 56. This argues that the undisputed facts entitle one side to win as a matter of law, so no trial is needed. The opposing party has 30 days to respond. A defendant can file at any time; a plaintiff must wait at least 20 days after the case begins. The court will not grant summary judgment simply because the other side files nothing, but not responding is a serious tactical mistake.11Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 56
Two other motions come up constantly during discovery: a motion to compel, which asks the court to force a stonewalling party to answer, and a motion for protective order, which asks the court to limit requests that are unreasonably burdensome or invasive.
Discovery
Trial Rules 26 through 37 govern the fact-gathering phase. The scope is deliberately broad. You can seek any non-privileged information relevant to any party’s claims or defenses, even material that would not be admissible at trial, as long as it is reasonably calculated to lead to admissible evidence.12Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 26
The main tools:
- Interrogatories. Written questions answered under oath, with at least 30 days to respond. Objections must be specific to each question; blanket objections are prohibited under Trial Rule 33.13Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 33
- Depositions. Live, sworn testimony taken outside court, usually at an attorney’s office, and recorded. The transcript can be used at trial to challenge a witness whose account has changed.
- Requests for production. Demands for documents, electronically stored information, and other tangible items under Trial Rule 34. In modern cases this often means email, text messages, and cloud-stored files.
- Requests for admission. Statements the other side must admit or deny; admitted facts are treated as established.
When cooperation breaks down, a motion to compel under Trial Rule 37 can bring sanctions ranging from monetary penalties to striking pleadings or entering judgment against the non-complying party.
Trial
If motions, settlement, and mediation don’t resolve the case, it goes to trial. Indiana civil juries are six people, not twelve.14Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 47 Each side gets three peremptory challenges to strike jurors without stating a reason, and the court may seat up to three alternates with additional peremptories allocated for them.
Jury selection begins with questioning to identify bias. The court can set time limits but must grant more time when the complexity of the case or the jurors’ answers warrant it. The trial then follows the standard sequence: opening statements, plaintiff’s evidence, defendant’s evidence, and closing arguments. Under Indiana Rule of Evidence 402 relevant evidence is admissible, but Rule 403 lets the judge exclude it when the value is substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice, jury confusion, or needless delay.15Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Evidence – Rule 403 Expert testimony is admitted under Rule 702 when the expert is qualified and the specialized knowledge will help the factfinder; scientific testimony carries an added reliability requirement under Rule 702(b).16Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Evidence – Rule 702
Judgment and Collection
The court’s judgment resolves the legal issues and can award money damages, order injunctive relief, or declare the parties’ rights. When a case has multiple claims or parties, the court can enter final judgment on some claims while others remain pending, but only if it expressly determines there is no just reason for delay and directs entry of judgment. Without that language, a partial ruling stays interlocutory and can be revised until the whole case is decided.17Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 54
Winning is not the same as collecting. If the losing side does not pay, Indiana law provides several enforcement tools:
- Wage garnishment. Limited to the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which weekly disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum hourly wage. A debtor can petition to reduce the percentage to as low as 10% for good cause.18Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 24-4.5-5-105 – Limitation on Garnishment
- Bank levy. Seizing funds directly from the debtor’s account through a court-ordered writ of execution.
- Property lien. Recording the judgment in the county where the debtor owns real estate, which must be cleared before the property can be sold or refinanced.
- Personal property seizure. The sheriff seizes and sells non-exempt assets at an execution sale.
Support-related garnishment runs on different limits: up to 50% of disposable earnings if the debtor supports another spouse or dependent child, or 60% if not, with each figure rising 5% for arrearages older than 12 weeks.
Appeals
A party who believes the trial court made a legal error can appeal to the Indiana Court of Appeals. The notice of appeal is due within 30 days after the final judgment is entered in the chronological case summary. If any party files a motion to correct error, the 30-day clock resets and runs from the ruling on that motion or the date it is deemed denied, whichever comes first.19Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Appellate Procedure – Rule 9
Filing an appeal does not automatically stop the winning party from enforcing the judgment. To pause enforcement, the appealing party must post an appeal bond or other court-approved security, generally covering the full unsatisfied judgment plus costs, interest, and potential delay damages. Government entities and court-appointed representatives such as estate administrators can obtain a stay without a bond.20Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure – Rule 62
Appeals focus on legal errors, not factual disputes. The appellate court generally accepts the trial court’s factual findings, and a successful appeal can result in reversal, modification, or a remand for further proceedings.
Mediation
Indiana courts actively encourage mediation, and judges can order parties into it. ADR Rule 2.7 sets the procedural framework.21Indiana Judicial Branch. Indiana Alternative Dispute Resolution Rule 2.7 – Mediation Procedure The mediator cannot give legal advice, represent either side, or predict how a court would rule, and must explain that role to the parties. Sessions can be joint or separate, are closed to the public, and each side may submit a confidential case statement of up to ten pages beforehand.
Mediation stays voluntary in one important sense: no one can be forced to accept a settlement. If the parties don’t reach agreement, the case goes back on the litigation track.
Representing Yourself
Indiana lets individuals represent themselves in civil cases, but the courts hold self-represented litigants to the same procedural rules as lawyers. Every deadline, formatting requirement, and evidentiary rule applies equally. A judge cannot walk you through your case or overlook missteps because you don’t have counsel. Small claims court is designed to be more accessible, with simplified procedures and lower stakes. For anything more complex, the procedural rules trip up even experienced attorneys, and mistakes at early stages are often difficult or impossible to fix later.