We are getting near the end of the Court’s October 2017 Term. Some petitioners and respondents might be thinking about timing their filings to either have the case considered this term, or have it carried through the summer and into next fall. The last conference for this term is June 21st, and the last paid-petition [...]
The most elemental feature of a petition for writ of certiorari is the Questions Presented page. Here the petitioner must concisely set out the basic issues at stake. Experienced Supreme Court practitioners consider a well-crafted Questions Presented to be the most critical tool for gaining cert consideration. In the words of Supreme Court scholar Stephen [...]
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals—like every other federal circuit court—uses both the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure (FRAP), as well as its own set of local rules (LR). The FRAP lays out general practice standards for all of the federal appellate courts, but also allows the circuits to compile their own rules that can expand, [...]
At Cockle Legal Briefs, we offer the most thorough and complete legal proofreading in the industry. We do not simply review the draft for rule compliance, or assign a single reader to quickly scan the draft for obvious errors. Our teams of two readers examine every line, word, and character to find any possible problem [...]
On December 1st, 2016, new amendments to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure (FRAP) will go into effect. Some of the changes will significantly impact federal appellate practice. A practitioner representing an amicus filer in a circuit court of appeals will need to pay particular attention to changes in FRAP 29. Circuit Court of Appeals: The [...]
On December 1st, 2016, new amendments to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure (FRAP) will go into effect. Some of the changes will significantly impact federal appellate practice. A practitioner in a circuit court of appeals will need to pay particular attention to the amendments that will shorten permissible brief limits for briefs. Circuit Court [...]
Cockle Legal Briefs works with non-lawyers filing a petition for writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court. Occasionally our conversations with our pro se customers move beyond the necessary formatting and content requirements for a Supreme Court brief, and into more basic questions of legal writing. We have a few general legal writing tips. [...]
At Cockle Legal Briefs, we work with quite a few non-lawyers filing their own petitions in the U.S. Supreme Court. Occasionally our conversations with these pro se litigants move beyond the necessary formatting and content requirements for a Supreme Court brief, and into more basic questions of legal writing. We have a few general legal [...]
An important element of the legal brief format is the cover. The first item that will be read by the justices, the cover not only provides basic information about the case, it can also convey subtly profound cues about the quality of the argument contained within the pages. The Facts Rule 34.1 lays out the [...]
A challenging concept for new Supreme Court filers is determining the due date for the petition-stage reply brief. Here is the answer: there is no due date for the petition-stage reply brief. Petitions have set due dates, determined by the concluding date of lower court considerations. Likewise, respondents and amici have clear deadlines, counting from [...]