Under Rule 60(a), what type of errors in judgments are corrected?

• A. Clerical errors such as typos
• B. Mistakes of law
• C. Newly discovered evidence
• D. Fraud or misconduct

Answer: (A)

Rule 60(a) corrects clerical errors in judgments and other parts of the court’s record. These are purely mechanical mistakes in how the judgment or its record was written, not errors in the court’s decision. Examples include typos, misdated figures, or wrong names—slips that don’t change the substantive outcome but misstate what the court intended. Because the issue is simply fixing writing/mechanical mistakes, the court may correct them without rearguing the case and can do so at any time.

Mistakes of law involve legal reasoning or interpretation and aren’t addressed by this rule; they’re handled under other relief provisions. Newly discovered evidence concerns information not previously available and is treated under different subsections of Rule 60. Fraud or misconduct relates to more serious irregularities in obtaining or entering the judgment and is likewise not a clerical error under Rule 60(a).