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Magistrate's Court · Magistrate's Court

Notice of intention to defend delivered — Magistrate's Court

The defendant has given notice to defend.

The periods

StepPeriodRule
Plea due+20 court daysMagistrates' Courts Rule 17(1)

Worked out from Saturday 17 October 2026

ThenBy
Plea due+20 court days · Magistrates' Courts Rule 17(1) Mon 16 Nov 2026

Public holidays inside this window, skipped by the count: Local government elections (4 Nov).

A working aid computed from the published rule, not legal advice. Confirm against the rule and diarise with a margin. Firms on AttorneyOS get this table on the matter itself, with every date in the diary.

Questions

Plea due: how long after notice of intention to defend delivered — Magistrate's Court?

20 court days from the day it happened, counted in court days, which exclude Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays (Uniform Rule 1). The rule is Magistrates' Courts Rule 17(1). If the last day is not a court day, check whether the rule carries it to the next one.

Can I rely on these dates?

They are computed from the published rule by the AttorneyOS deadline engine and are a working aid, not legal advice. Confirm the deadline against the rule itself and diarise it with a margin.

More: every trigger in the library · served today · court days calculator · this week in practice.