When must a respondent answer an application to enforce an agency order?

Identify the enforcement application and verify its actual court-of-appeals filing.

Distinguish an enforcement application from a petition to review an agency order.

Identify the respondent responsible for answering and the applicant who must receive service.

Read the actual docket and any granted extension before using the national default.

1. Establish the scoped procedure and actual filing event.
2. Exclude that filing day.
3. Count 21 calendar days.
4. Check final-day holidays, inaccessibility and applicable directions.

Exclude the verified filing day and count every calendar day under FRAP 26(a)(1). If the final day is Saturday, Sunday or a legal holiday, continue to the next open day. Check actual inaccessibility and any applicable order.

FRAP 26(a)(6) includes the listed federal holidays and holidays declared by the President or Congress. For a period after an event it also includes applicable state holidays, including the state of the circuit clerk’s principal office. Establish the actual circuit and applicable calendar for this agency proceeding. The national calculator does not infer additional state holidays, inaccessibility or granted relief.

These clocks start from filing rather than service. Rule 26(c) does not add three days merely because a copy of the triggering paper was served.

Fictitious example

In a fictitious scoped proceeding, the enforcement application is filed on July 6, 2026. Exclude July 6 and count 21 calendar days. July 27, 2026 is the assumed open final day, with no extra state holiday, inaccessibility or different court direction.

Fictitious dates. Assume this national procedure applies with no extra holiday, inaccessibility or different direction. The calculation does not establish jurisdiction, intervention leave or accepted filing and service.

Both service and filing

Rule 15(b)(2) requires serving the answer on the applicant and filing it with the clerk within the applicable period.

Default consequence

Rule 15(b)(2) says the court will enter judgment for the relief requested if the respondent fails to answer in time.

Enforcement jurisdiction

Rule 15(b)(1) requires filing the application with the clerk of a court of appeals authorized to enforce the agency order. This calculator does not establish that authority.

Agency-rule scope

Rule 20 applies the Appellate Rules to agency review and enforcement except Rules 3–14 and 22–23. Its appellant/appellee terms include the specified agency-proceeding actors.

Actual granted relief

Read Rule 26(b), local requirements and any actual extension grant. A pending request alone does not replace the national period.

• This guide does not establish current statutory review jurisdiction, a petition-for-review statutory period or entitlement to intervention.
• Confirm actual circuit-local requirements and case orders before completing filing and service.

• Verify the enforcement application and its actual filing date.
• Identify the respondent and applicant.
• Prepare the answer and check current circuit form requirements.
• Serve the applicant and file with the circuit clerk within the applicable period.
• Preserve accepted filing and separate service evidence.
• Electronic court-of-appeals filing ends at midnight in the circuit clerk’s principal-office time zone under FRAP 26(a)(4)(B). Ordinary paper filing requires circuit-clerk receipt and ends at scheduled office closure. The brief/appendix dispatch exception does not itself cover these answers, motions or proposed judgments. Represented persons ordinarily file electronically under Rule 25. Confirm current local instructions, permitted channels, separate required service and actual inaccessibility.