Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Responses & Reply to Responses of Motion in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

(3) Response.



(A) Time to file. Any party may file a response to a motion; Fed. R. App. P. 27(a)(2) governs its contents. The response must be filed within 8 days after service of the motion unless the court shortens or extends the time. A motion authorized by Fed. R. App. P. 8, 9, 18, or 41 may be granted before the 8-day period runs only if the court gives reasonable notice to the parties that it intends to act sooner.



(B) Request for affirmative relief. A response may include a motion for affirmative relief. The time to respond to the new motion, and to reply to that response, are governed by Fed. R. App. P. 27(a)(3)(A) and (a)(4). The title of the response must alert the court to the request for relief.



(4) Reply to Response. Any reply to a response must be filed within 5 days after service of the response. A reply must not present matters that do not relate to the response.



(b) Disposition of a Motion for a Procedural Order. The court may act on a motion for a procedural order — including a motion under Fed. R. App. P. 26(b) — at any time without awaiting a response, and may, by rule or by order in a particular case, authorize its clerk to act on specified types of procedural motions. A party adversely affected by the court’s, or the clerk’s, action may file a motion to reconsider, vacate, or modify that action. Timely opposition filed after the motion is granted in whole or in part does not constitute a request to reconsider, vacate, or modify the disposition; a motion requesting that relief must be filed.



(c) Power of a Single Judge to Entertain a Motion. A circuit judge may act alone on any motion, but may not dismiss or otherwise determine an appeal or other proceeding. A court of appeals may provide by rule or by order in a particular case that only the court may act on any motion or class of motions. The court may review the action of a single judge.



(d) Form of Papers; Page Limits; and Number of Copies.

Monday, January 19, 2009

STAY OR INJUNCTION PENDING APPEAL

(a) Motion for Stay.
(1) Initial Motion in the District Court. A party must ordinarily move first in the district court for the following relief:
(A) a stay of the judgment or order of a district court pending appeal;
(B) approval of a supersedeas bond; or
(C) an order suspending, modifying, restoring, or granting an injunction while an appeal is pending.
(2) Motion in the Court of Appeals; Conditions on Relief. A motion for the relief mentioned in Fed. R. App. P. 8(a)(1) may be made to the court of appeals or to one of its judges.
(A) The motion must:
(i) show that moving first in the district court would be impracticable; or
(ii) state that, a motion having been made, the district court denied the motion or failed to afford the relief requested and state any reasons given by the district court for its action.
(B) The motion must also include:
(I) the reasons for granting the relief requested and the facts relied on;
(ii) originals or copies of affidavits or other sworn statements supporting facts subject to dispute; and
(iii) relevant parts of the record.
(C) The moving party must give reasonable notice of the motion to all parties.
(D) A motion under this Fed. R. App. P. 8(a)(2) must be filed with the circuit clerk and normally will be considered by a panel of the court. But in an exceptional case in which time requirements make that procedure impracticable, the motion may be made to and considered by a single judge.
(E) The court may condition relief on a party’s filing a bond or other appropriate security in the district court.

(b) Proceeding Against a Surety. If a party gives security in the form of a bond or stipulation or other undertaking with one or more sureties, each surety submits to the jurisdiction of the district court and irrevocably appoints the district clerk as the surety’s agent on whom any papers affecting the surety’s liability on the bond or undertaking may be served. On motion, a surety’s liability may be enforced in the district court without the necessity of an independent action. The motion and any notice that the district court prescribes may be served on the district clerk, who must promptly mail a copy to each surety whose address is known.

(c) Stay in a Criminal Case. Rule 38 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure governs a stay in a criminal case.

(As amended Apr. 27, 1995; eff. Dec 1, 1995; May 11, 1998, eff. Dec. 1, 1998.)

Cross Reference: 9th Cir. R.s 27-1, 27-2, 27-3, Motions Practice.

Appeal As of Right - When Taken

Filing Before Entry of Judgment. A notice of appeal filed after the court announces a decision or order — but before the entry of the judgment or order — is treated as filed on the date of and after the entry.

If a party files a notice of appeal after the court announces or enters a judgment — but before it disposes of any motion listed in Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(4)(A) — the notice becomes effective to appeal a judgment or order, in whole or in part, when the order disposing of the last such remaining motion is entered.