Ninth Circuit Rules
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Ninth Circuit Rules |
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FRAP 32
FORM OF BRIEFS, APPENDICES AND OTHER PAPERS
(a) Form of a Brief.
(1) Reproduction.
(A) A brief may be reproduced by any process that yields a clear black image on light paper. The paper must be opaque and unglazed. Only one side of the paper may be used.
(B) Text must be reproduced with a clarity that equals or exceeds the output of a laser printer.
(C) Photographs, illustrations, and tables may be reproduced by any method that results in a good copy of the original; a glossy finish is acceptable if the original is glossy.
(2) Cover. Except for filings by unrepresented parties, the cover of the appellant's brief must be blue; the appellee's, red; an intervenor's or amicus curiae's, green; and any reply brief, gray. The front cover of a brief must contain:
(A) the number of the case centered at the top;
(B) the name of the court;
(C) the title of the case (see Rule 12(a));
(D) the nature of the proceeding (e.g., Appeal, Petition for Review) and the name of the court, agency, or board below;
(E) the title of the brief, identifying the party or parties for whom the brief is filed; and
(F) the name, office address, and telephone number of counsel representing the party for whom the brief is filed.
(3) Binding. The brief must be bound in any manner that is secure, does not obscure the text, and permits the brief to lie reasonably flat when open.
(4) Paper Size, Line Spacing, and Margins. The brief must be on 8 ½ by 11 inch paper. The text must be double-spaced, but quotations more than two lines long may be indented and single-spaced. Headings and footnotes may be single-spaced. Margins must be at least one inch on all four sides. Page numbers may be placed in the margins, but no text may appear there.
(5) Typeface. Either a proportionally spaced or a monospaced face may be used.
(A) A proportionally spaced face must include serifs, but sans-serif type may be used in headings and captions. A proportionally spaced face must be 14-point or larger.
(B) A monospaced face may not contain more than 10 ½ characters per inch.
(6) Type Styles. A brief must be set in a plain, roman style, although italics or boldface may be used for emphasis. Case names must be italicized or underlined.
(7) Length.
(A) Page limitation. A principal brief may not exceed 30 pages, or a reply brief 15 pages, unless it complies with Rule 32(a)(7)(B) and (C).
(B) Type-volume limitation.
(i) A principal brief is acceptable if:
(ii) A reply brief is acceptable if it contains no more than half of the type volume specified in Rule 32(a)(7)(B)(i).
(iii) Headings, footnotes, and quotations count toward the word and line limitations. The corporate disclosure statement, table of contents, table of citations, statement with respect to oral argument, any addendum containing statutes, rules or regulations, and any certificates of counsel do not count toward the limitation.
(C) Certificate of compliance. A brief submitted under Rule 32(a)(7)(B) must include a certificate by the attorney, or an unrepresented party, that the brief complies with the type-volume limitation. The person preparing the certificate may rely on the word or line count of the word-processing system used to prepare the brief. The certificate must state either:
(i) the number of words in the brief; or
(ii) the number of lines of monospaced type in the brief.
(b) Form of an Appendix. An appendix must comply with Rule 32(a)(1), (2), (3), and (4), with the following exceptions:
(1) The cover of a separately bound appendix must be white.
(2) An appendix may include a legible photocopy of any document found in the record or of a printed judicial or agency decision.
(3) When necessary to facilitate inclusion of odd-sized documents such as technical drawings, an appendix may be a size other than 8 ½ by 11 inches, and need not lie reasonably flat when opened.
(c) Form of Other Papers.
(1) Motion. The form of a motion is governed by Rule 27(d).
(2) Other Papers. Any other paper, including a petition for rehearing and a petition for rehearing en banc, and any response to such a petition, must be reproduced in the manner prescribed by Rule 32(a), with the following exceptions:
(A) a cover is not necessary if the caption and signature page of the paper together contain the information required by Rule 32(a)(2); and
(B) Rule 32(a)(7) does not apply.
(d) Local Variation. Every court of appeals must accept documents that comply with the form requirements of this rule. By local rule or order in a particular case a court of appeals may accept documents that do not meet all of the form requirements of this rule.
CIRCUIT RULE 32
FORM OF BRIEF
[abrogated 1/1/99]
See Fed. R. App. P. 32, effective December 1, 1998.
FORM OF BRIEFS: CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
All briefs submitted under Circuit Rules 28-4 or Circuit Rule 32-4, must include a certificate with language identical to and a format substantially similar to Form 8 in the Appendix of Forms attached to these rules.
MOTIONS TO EXCEED THE PAGE OR TYPE-VOLUME LIMITATION
The court looks with disfavor on motions to exceed the applicable page or type-volume limitations. Such motions will be granted only upon a showing of diligence and substantial need. A motion for permission to exceed the page or type-volume limitations set forth at Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(7) (A) or (B) must be filed on or before the brief’s due date and must be accompanied by a declaration stating in detail the reasons for the motion.
Any such motions shall be accompanied by a single copy of the brief the applicant proposes to file and a Form 8 certification as required by Circuit Rule 32-1 as to the line or word count. The cost of preparing and revising the brief will not be considered by the court in ruling on the motion.
CIRCUIT ADVISORY COMMITTEE NOTE TO RULE 32-2
If the court does not grant the requested relief or grants the relief only in part, the court ordinarily will provide the party a reasonable interval after the entry of the order to file a brief as directed by the court.
BRIEFS FILED PURSUANT TO COURT ORDER
All briefs filed pursuant to court order must conform to the format requirements of Fed. R. App. P. 32.
If an order of this court sets forth a page limit, the affected party may comply with the limit by
(1) filing a monospaced brief of the designated number of pages, or
(2) filing a monospaced brief for which the number of lines divided by 26 does not exceed the designated page limit, or
(3) filing a monospaced or proportionally spaced brief in which the word count, divided by 280, does not exceed the designated page limit.
BRIEFS AND EXCERPTS OF RECORD IN CAPITAL CASES
Briefs. The requirements of Fed. R. App. P. 32 shall apply to appeals from district court judgments which finally dispose of a capital case, except that the following page or type-volume limitations apply:
(1) A proportionally spaced principal brief must not exceed 21,000 words and a reply brief must not exceed 9,800 words.
(2) Briefs prepared in monospaced typeface shall either: (a) not exceed 75 pages (1,950 lines) for a principal brief and 35 pages (910 lines) for a reply brief, or (b) conform to the word count set forth in (1) above.
Excerpts. The appellant shall prepare and file excerpts of record in compliance with Circuit Rule 30-1. An appellant unable to obtain all or parts of the record shall so notify the court.
In addition to the documents listed in Circuit Rule 30-1.2, excerpts of record in capital cases shall contain all final orders and rulings of all state courts in appellate and post-conviction proceedings. Excerpts of record shall also include all final orders involving the conviction or sentence issued by the Supreme Court of United States.
UNREPRESENTED LITIGANTS
If an unrepresented litigant elects to file a form brief pursuant to Circuit Rule 28-1, neither the optional reply brief nor any petition for rehearing need comply with Fed. R. App. P. 32.
Alternatively, if an unrepresented litigant elects to file a brief that complies with Fed. R. App. P. 28 and Circuit Rule 28-2 but not with Fed. R. App. P. 32, any principal brief shall not exceed 40 pages, and an optional reply brief shall not exceed 20 pages.
Cross Reference to Fed. R. App. P. 32, Circuit Rule 30-1, Excerpts.