Short answer. The report must generally be filed within sixty days from notice of appointment, though the court may extend it. Once filed, the clerk serves copies on all interested parties, who then have ten days to file objections to the report's findings if they wish to.
What the law says
Except as otherwise expressly ordered by the court, such report shall be filed within sixty days from the date the commissioners were notified of their appointment, which time may be extended in the discretion of the court. Upon the filing of such report, the clerk of the court shall serve copies thereof on all interested parties, with notice that they are allowed ten days within which to file objections to the findings of the report, if they so desire.
Rule 67, Section 7 — Report by commissioners and judgment thereupon. Read the full provision →
The default sixty-day deadline
Unless the court expressly orders otherwise, the commissioners must file their report within sixty days from the date they were notified of their appointment. This deadline is not absolute, though — the court retains discretion to extend it when circumstances warrant, but the default expectation is that the report comes within two months. That default keeps expropriation cases moving instead of letting the valuation phase drag on indefinitely once commissioners are appointed.
Reporting can happen in stages
The rule also allows the court to order the commissioners to report on particular portions of the real estate as those portions are passed upon, letting the court render judgment on a partial report while the commissioners continue working through the remaining portions of the property being expropriated. This staged approach can speed up compensation for parts of a large or complex property that are already settled, instead of holding the whole case hostage to the slowest-moving portion.
Ten days to object once the report is filed
Once the report is filed, the clerk of court serves copies on all interested parties, along with notice that they have ten days within which to file objections to the report's findings if they wish. This creates a defined window during which any party dissatisfied with the commissioners' conclusions can flag their concerns before the court acts on the report.
Why the deadlines matter together
The sixty-day filing deadline and the ten-day objection period work as a pair: the first keeps the commissioners from letting the valuation process drift indefinitely, and the second gives every interested party a fixed, predictable chance to contest the results once they are in. Neither party is left guessing about when the report is coming or how long they have to respond to it, which keeps the case moving toward a resolved valuation instead of stalling indefinitely.
Related provisions
- Rule 67, Section 7 — Report by commissioners and judgment thereupon
- Rule 67, Section 6 — Proceedings by commissioners
- Rule 67, Section 8 — Action upon commissioners' report