FAQs

An appeal is perfected when the necessary documents are filed with the appeals court enabling the case to be calendared for a certain term.

The rules are different for each state appellate court. The time limit for perfecting a federal appeal is governed by FRAP and local rules of the circuit. Contact Counsel Press for clarification of the rules of the specific court to which you are taking the appeal.

A term is a period or session during which an appellate court will hear oral argument of appeals perfected for that specific term.

A Record on Appeal consists of all the original papers, exhibits, transcripts (if any), filed with the court of original jurisdiction.

The purpose of the Record on Appeal is to clearly inform the appellate court of the relevant facts adduced at the trial necessary for rendering a fair and accurate appellate decision. These relevant facts are found from the proceedings below in the pleadings, motions, transcripts, exhibits, judgments, orders and decisions or opinions.

An Appendix consists of only such parts of the Record on Appeal as are essential to the issues being raised in the appeal.

The purpose of the Appendix is to emphasize only those portions of the record that the appellant and respondent/appellate wish to bring to the court's attention.

The Record on Appeal will include all the documents that were before the trial court at the time that the Order/Judgment was rendered. A Record on Appeal from a Final Order or Judgment will include the Notice of Appeal; the Order/Judgment appealed from, any Memorandum Decision/Opinion, the main pleadings, the trial transcript and trial exhibits. If the appeal is interlocutory, the Record on Appeal will include the Notice of Appeal, the Order/Judgment appealed from, any Memorandum Decision/Opinion, the motion with supporting affidavits, affirmations, declarations and any exhibits thereto, opposing affidavits, affirmations and declarations and any exhibits thereto and any reply affidavits, affirmations or declarations and transcript of oral argument (if any). Counsel is cautioned to read the rules governing proper sequencing of documents in the Record on Appeal.

Each court mandates that certain documents must be included in the appendix. This varies from state to state and from circuit to circuit. But in most instances these include the Notice of Appeal, the Order/Judgment appealed from, any Memorandum Decision/Opinion written in conjunction with the order appealed from, as well as any excerpts of the papers, transcripts, exhibits, pleadings that the parties wish to bring to the court's attention. Counsel is cautioned to read the rules governing proper sequencing of documents in the Appendix.

The appellate court rules for the jurisdiction dictate the organization and sequence of the record or appendix. The rules vary from state to state and from circuit to circuit. Counsel Press is familiar with the procedures for each court and will organize your documents properly, create tables of contents, draft necessary stipulations, statements or certifications, paginate, create page headings (if required by the rules), draft covers for the record/appendix and brief, all in accordance to the rules of the specific court in which the appeal is being filed.

The court requirements vary with respect to page limitations. Some courts have page limits, while others have word count limitations or a limitation on the number of lines in a brief. Call Counsel Press for clarification of the rules of the specific court to which you are taking the appeal.

A proportional typeface adjusts the amount of space assigned to each letter based upon the width and height of the letter as well as the kerning or space between each letter within a word. For example in times roman a capital T will take up more space than a lower case i and the word processing system will assign a different amount of white space (kerning or tracking between the T and the i). On the other hand, a non-proportional typeface such as courier will assign the same amount of space between each letter irrespective of the width or height of the letter.

Font and typeface mean the same thing. It is an assortment or set of type that is all of one size and style. Type size on the other hand is the height and width assigned to each letter. So when the rules of a particular court refer to Times Roman 14 point, it means the font used shall be Times Roman while the type size shall not be less than 14 points.

The general rules for handling appeals are covered by FRAP. (Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure). However, the twelve circuit courts and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (patent and trademark cases) have local rules that supersede FRAP. In the absence of a local rule, one should follow FRAP. Counsel is cautioned to read the IOP's (internal operating procedures) of the circuit to which he/she is appealing, since the internal operating procedure may in fact differ from the FRAP. Call Counsel Press for clarification of the rules of the specific court to which you are taking the appeal.

Many courts across the country accept CD-ROM filings, which are also called companion briefs. As of today, courts that accept CD-ROM filings also insist that the requisite number of paper copies for the Brief, Record or Appendix still be filed. Federal and state courts are continuously enacting rules which allow for filing of companion briefs. Besides its compact format, one CD-ROM can, in most instances, hold all the briefs filed in the case along with the documents contained in the appendix or record. This is a particularly effective tool when Briefs and Records or Appendices have been hyperlinked. Contact cdrom@counselpress.com to receive a demonstration disk.