Background
Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 6(d) has long provided that when a party is served by mail or commercial delivery company, three business days are added to whatever response deadline otherwise applies. With the expansion of electronic filing across Arkansas courts under Administrative Order No. 21, a practical question emerged: does this three-day extension also apply when a document is served through the court’s electronic filing system?
Administrative Order No. 21 makes service effective upon transmission of the electronic filing notice by the clerk. Some practitioners took the position that because e-filing is neither “mail” nor “commercial delivery company,” the three-day extension did not apply to electronically served documents. Others argued it should, given that e-filed documents—like mailed ones—are not handed directly to the receiving party.
The Arkansas Supreme Court’s Committee on Civil Practice addressed this ambiguity by recommending an amendment to Rule 6(d). After a public comment period, the Supreme Court adopted the amendment in this per curiam order, effective immediately.
The Court’s Holding
The Supreme Court adopted the Committee’s recommended amendment to Rule 6(d), which now expressly includes “electronic transmission, including e-mail or service through the court’s electronic filing system pursuant to Rule 5(b)(2)” in the list of service methods that trigger the three-business-day extension. The amended rule reads in pertinent part:
“Whenever a party has the right or is required to do some act or take some proceedings within a prescribed period after the service of a notice or other paper upon him and the notice or paper is served upon him by mail, commercial delivery company, or electronic transmission, including e-mail or service through the court’s electronic filing system pursuant to Rule 5(b)(2), three (3) business days shall be added to the prescribed period.”
The rule continues to carve out an exception for service of the initial summons and complaint by mail or commercial delivery company under Rule 4, which does not receive additional time.
Key Takeaways
- Three business days are now explicitly added to response deadlines when service occurs through the Arkansas courts’ electronic filing system—resolving a split among practitioners.
- The amendment applies to all electronically transmitted service, including e-mail and e-filing system notices, not just traditional mail and commercial delivery.
- The exception for initial service of summons and complaint under Rule 4 remains unchanged—no extra time is added for that category regardless of service method.
Why It Matters
For Arkansas practitioners, this amendment eliminates a source of uncertainty that had practical consequences for calculating deadlines. Since Administrative Order No. 21 made electronic filing the default in many Arkansas courts, a significant volume of service now occurs electronically. Practitioners who had been calculating response deadlines without the three-day extension for e-filed documents should immediately update their calendaring practices.
The amendment is effective as of the date of the per curiam—June 4, 2026—so it applies to all service occurring on or after that date. Litigators should review any pending deadlines to ensure they account for the clarified rule.