Served with a Lawsuit in Massachusetts? What Happens in the First 20 Days
Updated: 15 hours ago
A process server hands someone at the front desk an envelope, or a constable leaves papers at an owner's home. Inside are a summons and a complaint. A business that has never been sued in the United States may be tempted to call the other side, wait to see if the case goes away, or forward the papers to headquarters in Shanghai or Taipei and wait for instructions. Each of those can use up time the company needs to meet its response deadline, and some can create new problems.
Decisions made in the first 20 days after service can affect the rest of the case. In that period, the company has to decide how to respond, whether to raise defenses that can be waived if not raised early, whether to assert its own claims, and whether to notify its insurer. This post explains what happens in that period and what the decisions are. If the company is based in China or Taiwan with no U.S. office, service and jurisdiction work differently, and Disputes with US Buyers: A Practical Guide for Chinese Suppliers covers that situation.
What does it mean to be served, and how long do we have?
Service is the formal delivery of the summons and complaint that gives the court power to move forward against the defendant. In Massachusetts state court, an individual is generally served by handing the papers to that person, by leaving them at the person's "last and usual place of abode," or by delivering them to an agent authorized to receive them. A company is generally served by delivering the papers to an officer, a managing or general agent, the person in charge at its principal place of business in Massachusetts, or its registered agent.
In most Massachusetts state court cases, the defendant has 20 days after service to respond, unless the court orders otherwise. The day of service does not count, the last day does, and if the last day falls on a weekend or legal holiday the deadline moves to the next business day. The summons itself states the time to respond and warns that a default judgment can enter if the defendant does not. If the case was filed in federal court, the period is generally 21 days.
Sometimes service looks wrong: papers left with a receptionist who has no authority, or delivered to a former address. A defect in service may be worth raising, but the papers still need a timely response. Under Rule 12, objections to service and to personal jurisdiction are generally waived if they are not raised in the defendant's first motion or answer. A defendant who ignores papers because service seemed defective risks losing the objection and the case at the same time.
What happens if the deadline passes?
If a defendant fails to plead or otherwise defend, the plaintiff can ask the clerk to enter a default under Rule 55. A default generally means the defendant can no longer contest the allegations. A default judgment can follow. Where the claim is for a sum certain, the clerk can enter judgment for that amount and costs; in other cases, the plaintiff applies to the court, which may hold a hearing on damages.
Once a judgment enters, the plaintiff can generally obtain a writ of execution and use the collection tools Massachusetts law provides, which can reach bank accounts, money owed to the company by its own customers, and other property.
Removing a default is possible, but it is not automatic. The court may set aside an entry of default for good cause, and may set aside a default judgment under Rule 60(b) on grounds such as mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect, generally within a reasonable time and, for those grounds, no more than one year after the judgment. The motion has to explain why the deadline was missed. The motion costs money, and the outcome is uncertain.
What are the options for the first response?
The first filing is generally an answer or a motion under Rule 12. An answer responds to each allegation and states the defenses. A Rule 12 motion asks the court to dismiss some or all of the case before answering, for example for lack of personal jurisdiction, insufficient service, or failure to state a claim. Filing a Rule 12 motion generally changes the deadline: if the court denies it, the answer is due within 10 days after notice of that ruling. A motion to dismiss can narrow a case early. It can also show the plaintiff weaknesses it may then try to fix by amending the complaint. Whether to file one depends on the case.
Extensions. Plaintiffs' counsel may agree to a short extension, though some will not, and the court can extend deadlines for cause. An extension gives the company time to investigate. Any agreed extension should be confirmed in writing and, where required, filed with the court.
Removal to federal court. If the case could have been filed in federal court, a defendant generally has 30 days from receiving the complaint to remove it. A case that could be in federal court only because the parties are from different states generally cannot be removed if a properly served defendant is a citizen of Massachusetts. A company is generally a citizen of the state where it is incorporated and the state of its principal place of business.
Counterclaims. This decision is easy to overlook. Under Rule 13, a claim the defendant has against the plaintiff that arises out of the same transaction or occurrence generally must be stated as a counterclaim in the answer. A supplier sued for late delivery that believes the buyer underpaid may lose that claim if it is not pleaded now. Counterclaims can also affect settlement discussions, because the plaintiff then faces exposure of its own.
These choices require counsel admitted in the court where the case is pending.
How does Chapter 93A change the picture for a defendant?
Chapter 93A, the Massachusetts consumer protection statute, allows double or treble damages for willful or knowing violations, plus attorney's fees. Settle or Sue? Why the Answer in a US Business Dispute Is Often Both explains how 93A shapes leverage. For defendants, the statute also provides a written settlement tender, in both consumer and business cases, that can limit exposure if a court later finds it reasonable.
Consumer claims (Section 9). A consumer generally has to send a written demand at least 30 days before suing. A business that receives that demand and, within 30 days, makes a written tender of settlement that the consumer rejects can later file the tender with the court. If the court finds the tender was reasonable in relation to the injury actually suffered, recovery is limited to the relief tendered. The statute also allows multiple damages where the refusal to grant relief on demand was made in bad faith. If a demand letter arrived before the lawsuit, how the company answered it may already be part of the case.
Business-to-business claims (Section 11). There is no comparable pre-suit demand requirement. Instead, the defendant may tender a written offer of settlement for single damages with its answer. If the plaintiff rejects it and the court later finds the offer reasonable in relation to the injury actually suffered, the court will not award more than single damages, which removes the doubling or trebling. Because the tender goes in with the answer, it is a first-20-days decision, and it requires an early, honest estimate of what the plaintiff actually lost.
What should happen with records and insurance right away?
Preservation. Once a company is sued, or reasonably expects to be, it has a duty to keep relevant evidence. In practice that means a litigation hold: written notice to the people involved that nothing related to the dispute may be deleted, and suspension of automatic deletion on email, shared drives, and messaging apps. For companies with ties to China or Taiwan, important records may include WeChat messages, sometimes on employees' personal phones, and Chinese-language documents held by a parent company. Deleting messages after service, even routine cleanup, can lead a court to impose sanctions or allow the jury to infer the missing material was harmful. From Allies to Adversaries: Asian Immigrant Business Disputes and U.S. Litigation explains how informal messages become evidence, and The Hidden Risks of Mandarin Chinese-Language Litigation covers what happens when those records must be translated and tested under oath.
Insurance. Commercial general liability, directors and officers (D&O), and errors and omissions (E&O) policies may cover the defense of a suit, sometimes even when the claim seems outside the policy at first glance. Many policies require prompt notice, and late notice can give the insurer grounds to contest coverage. The complaint should go to the broker or carrier promptly after service, well before the answer is due. Officers of a U.S. subsidiary should also check whether the company's D&O policy covers them personally; US Subsidiary of Chinese Company: 29 Compliance Questions Answered discusses D&O coverage and indemnification for subsidiary officers.
Should we try to settle early?
Sometimes. An early offer can make sense when liability is fairly clear, the amount is modest compared to the cost of defense, the relationship has value, or discovery would expose records the company would rather not produce. It may make less sense when the claim is weak, when a counterclaim gives the company real leverage, or when an early offer could invite more suits. Negotiating does not pause the answer deadline; as Settle or Sue? explains, deadlines keep running while the parties talk.
Owners and managers should avoid contacting the plaintiff directly about the case. Messages sent after service, especially apologetic or angry ones on WeChat, can be used as evidence and can undercut defenses. Settlement communications are better routed through counsel. Massachusetts Rule 68 also lets a defendant serve a formal offer of judgment more than 10 days before trial; if the plaintiff does not accept and later obtains a judgment no more favorable, the plaintiff generally must pay the costs incurred after the offer.
When the plaintiff is a business partner or co-owner, the dispute can involve the company's own books, bank accounts, and governance, and the company itself may be a party. Retaliating, changing access, or moving money after service can create new claims. Business Partner Disputes in Massachusetts: 27 Questions Answered covers what to expect when a partner sues, and Majority Shareholder Rights in Massachusetts: What Chinese Business Owners Need to Know explains the duties a controlling owner owes in a closely held company.
What this means for you
In the first 20 days, the company may need to raise defenses that can be waived, plead counterclaims that arise from the same transaction, notify its insurer, and decide whether to make a 93A tender. Some of those decisions are difficult to reverse later.
Our Early Case Assessment is a written assessment of the company's position, the range of likely outcomes, and the estimated cost of each path. Representative matters are described under Results.
Jeff C. Chang is admitted to the Massachusetts state courts, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and the U.S. Court of International Trade, and has been in practice since 2006. Chang Law Group can assess a complaint served on a business, the defenses and counterclaims that need to go into the first response, and whether an early resolution makes sense.
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Phone: (617) 307-1238
Email: info@jchanglaw.com
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Sources and Legal Authority
Mass. R. Civ. P. 4, Process - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 6, Time - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 12, Defenses and Objections - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 13, Counterclaim and Cross-Claim - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 55, Default - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 60, Relief from Judgment or Order - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 68, Offer of Judgment - mass.gov
Mass. R. Civ. P. 69, Execution - mass.gov
M.G.L. c. 93A, Section 9, Consumer Actions - malegislature.gov
M.G.L. c. 93A, Section 11, Business Actions - malegislature.gov
Fed. R. Civ. P. 12, Defenses and Objections - law.cornell.edu
28 U.S.C. 1446, Procedure for Removal - law.cornell.edu
28 U.S.C. 1441, Removal of Civil Actions - law.cornell.edu
28 U.S.C. 1332, Diversity of Citizenship - law.cornell.edu
This article is general information as of October 23, 2026. It isn't legal advice, and reading it doesn't create an attorney-client relationship. Every dispute turns on its own facts and documents. Chang Law Group LLC is licensed to practice in Massachusetts.
