Me. R. Civ. P. 41
Advisory Note - November 2023
Subdivision (a)(1) of Rule 41 is amended to allow for dismissal under this paragraph as to fewer than all plaintiffs or defendants.
The rule is also amended to make numbering consistent and to make stylistic changes not affecting the substance of the rule.
Advisory Committee's Notes - 1989
Rule 41(a)(l) is amended to provide that the plaintiff may unilaterally dismiss an action only prior to the filing of the answer or a motion for summary judgment, rather than at any time prior to trial, as formerly.
The amendment adopts the language of Federal Rule 41(a)(1). The Maine Rule as promulgated in 1959 departed from the Federal Rule in deference to prior Maine practice. See Reporter's Notes to M.R. Civ. P. 41(a); 1 Field, McKusick, and Wroth, Maine Civil Practice § 41.1 (2d ed. 1970). The development of extensive pretrial discovery practice and the recent emphasis on expedited pretrial procedure in Maine mean that plaintiffs should no longer have the tactical ability to impose expense and delay on other parties or avoid rule-or court-imposed deadlines by dismissal after extensive pretrial proceedings have taken place. The amendment will change the result of Hall v. Norton, 549 A.2d 372 (Me. 1988), in which the Law Court upheld a voluntary dismissal filed without prior notice to the court or defendant at 9:00 on the morning on which jury selection was to begin.