Hong Kong · civil procedure
What period applies to interrogatories answer deadline?
Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days.
- Period
- Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice
- Trigger
- Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period
- Rule
- Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)
Official verified English consolidated chapter 4A, version October 1,2025. Acquired October 9, 2026, with the official current register and immutable verified PDF. Current verified official English consolidated chapter PDFs acquired October 9, 2026. Version dates retained per chapter register. No claim that a calendar proves future gale, black-rainstorm or emergency office closures.
Free calculator · No account needed
Calculate your deadline
Loading calculator…
What lawyers say
5.0“The platform is really easy to use.”
Michael B.Employment litigation attorney · California
“The Evidence Record saved us time with our insurance on bankruptcy matters.”
MariaBankruptcy and commercial attorney · London, UK
“The most up-to-date service we could find.”
Li ChenArbitration practitioner · Singapore
What period applies to interrogatories answer deadline?
Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days.
Responsible actor. Recipient of qualifying interrogatories.
Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period
Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice
Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Actual interrogatories and specified period retained; Specified ordinary period at least 28 days; No different Court order. Twenty-eight days is the minimum notice specification, not a universal answer period. The Court may direct otherwise, including answer form.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)How does this provision count time?
- Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered
- Recipient of qualifying interrogatories uses the established effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period. Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Exclude the effective event day. Ordinary intervening weekends remain counted unless an applicable source provision excludes them. High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4), section 31(1), omits Summer Vacation for the applicable civil procedural period not exceeding one month unless the Court directs otherwise. Order 64 rule 1 supplies August 1 through August 31. Order 3 rule 3 separately covers pleading periods.
- Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days.
- Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days.
- A closed interparty or combined endpoint needs separate source qualification. An ordinary weekday calculation does not certify this boundary.
Recipient of qualifying interrogatories uses the established effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period. Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Exclude the effective event day. Ordinary intervening weekends remain counted unless an applicable source provision excludes them. High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4), section 31(1), omits Summer Vacation for the applicable civil procedural period not exceeding one month unless the Court directs otherwise. Order 64 rule 1 supplies August 1 through August 31. Order 3 rule 3 separately covers pleading periods.
Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days. This closed interparty or combined filing and service boundary is withheld pending separate qualification of section71 and the applicable Court procedure. The calculator refuses that boundary.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)What do independently checked examples show?
Fictitious example
Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply. Actual Specified Answer Days 28.
| Step | What is counted | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Example 1. Ordinary established facts | Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply. Actual Specified Answer Days 28. Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days. | Friday, November 6, 2026 |
| Example 2. Closed-day boundary | Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period occurs on Monday, September 21, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply. Actual Specified Answer Days 28. Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days. | A closed interparty completion requires separate Cap.1 section71 and applicable Rules qualification. No unverified service carry is inferred. |
| Example 3. Material procedural branch | Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The complete eligibility and procedural facts are not established. Actual Specified Answer Days not established. This actual branch must be established independently before any ordinary endpoint can be used. Actual interrogatories and specified period retained | Twenty-eight days is the minimum notice specification, not a universal answer period. The Court may direct otherwise, including answer form. |
Fictitious established facts. These examples do not establish eligibility, effective service, relief or a direction.
Try these dates in the calculatorWhich conditions and exceptions apply?
- Actual interrogatories and specified period retained
- Actual interrogatories and specified period retained
- Specified ordinary period at least 28 days
- Specified ordinary period at least 28 days
- No different Court order
- No different Court order
- Correct source counting and completion route
- Recipient of qualifying interrogatories uses the established effective service of interrogatories with the specified answer period. Actual specified period, not less than 28 days under the ordinary notice. Exclude the effective event day. Ordinary intervening weekends remain counted unless an applicable source provision excludes them. High Court Ordinance (Cap. 4), section 31(1), omits Summer Vacation for the applicable civil procedural period not exceeding one month unless the Court directs otherwise. Order 64 rule 1 supplies August 1 through August 31. Order 3 rule 3 separately covers pleading periods. Serve affidavit answers within the actual specified period unless otherwise ordered. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. Use the actual note’s period rather than replacing a longer lawful period with twenty-eight days.
- Recipient of qualifying interrogatories. Actual interrogatories and specified period retained; Specified ordinary period at least 28 days; No different Court order. Twenty-eight days is the minimum notice specification, not a universal answer period. The Court may direct otherwise, including answer form.
- Twenty-eight days is the minimum notice specification, not a universal answer period. The Court may direct otherwise, including answer form.
What must the responsible actor complete?
Questions about this procedure
What period applies to interrogatories answer deadline?
Do all interrogatories require answers in exactly twenty-eight days?
No. Order 26 rule 2(1)(a) requires a specified period not less than twenty-eight days.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Which document establishes the response period?
Retain the interrogatories’ note specifying the answer period and any actual Court order.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Can a longer specified period be ignored?
No. Paragraph (2) requires answers within the specified period unless the Court otherwise orders.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Must answers be verified by affidavit?
The ordinary paragraph (2) answer is by affidavit unless the Court directs otherwise.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Does service of a withdrawal application itself vary the answers?
An application is not an order. Review the actual decision and any altered response requirement.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Does the page assess whether each interrogatory is proper?
No. The period model does not decide relevance, privilege or whether an interrogatory may be withdrawn.
Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2)Official sources and review
Provisions used (5)
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Rules of the High Court (Cap. 4A), Order 26, rule 2(1)(a) and (2) | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| Rules of the High Court (Cap.4A), Order3 rules1–5 and Order64 rule1 | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| High Court Ordinance (Cap.4), section31(1), including its endorsed-writ proviso | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap.1), section71(1)–(2) | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| General Holidays Ordinance (Cap.149), section3 and Schedule | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |