District court — criminal · Pretrial motions
Motion to Dismiss the Indictment
Challenges defects in instituting the prosecution or in the indictment.
Filed by: Defendant
Not yet verified. Compiled from the national rules and not yet verified by a reviewing attorney. The national rules are amended each December 1, and local rules, standing orders and judges' practices add to them. Confirm with the current rules before filing. This is not legal advice.
What it must include
- Caption with court, case title (United States v. …) and case number
- Motion and grounds
- Memorandum of law
- Signature of counsel of record
- Certificate of service (FRCrP 49(a)–(b))
Deadline and length
Deadline: Defects listed in FRCrP 12(b)(3)(A)–(B) must be raised before trial; lack of jurisdiction may be raised any time while the case is pending (FRCrP 12(b)(2)).
Governing rules
- FRCrP 12(b)(1)
- FRCrP 12(b)(3)(A)–(B)
Check the local rules for
- Assigned judge’s individual practices or standing orders
Applies in federal district courts. Find your court for its local requirements.
Other pretrial motions
Draft this filing in DraftAria.
Court-formatted template with this checklist built in, and brackets where your matter details go.