United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Local Rules & Internal Operating Procedures
December 1, 2023

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SERVING AND FILING BRIEFS

SERVING AND FILING BRIEFS
 
Local Rule 31(a). Shortened Time for Service and Filing of Briefs in Criminal Cases.
Pursuant to the authority conferred by FRAP 31(a)(2), the time for serving and filing briefs in criminal appeals is shortened as follows: the appellant shall serve and file appellant's brief and appendix within thirty-five days after the date on which the briefing order is filed; the appellee shall serve and file appellee's brief within twenty-one days after service of the brief of the appellant; the appellant may serve and file a reply brief within ten days after service of the brief of the appellee.
Local Rule 31(b). Briefing Orders.
A formal briefing schedule shall be sent to the parties upon receipt of the record or determination by the Clerk that the record is complete -- whichever occurs first. Thus, the time for designating the contents of the joint appendix and the filing of briefs is controlled by the briefing order and not the receipt of the record as provided in FRAP 31(a)(1).
Local Rule 31(c). Briefing Extensions.
Extensions will be granted only when extraordinary circumstances exist. A motion for an extension of time to file a brief must be filed well in advance of the date the brief is due and must set forth the additional time requested and the reasons for the request. The Court discourages these motions and may deny the motion entirely or grant a lesser period of time than the time requested.
Local Rule 31(d). Number of Copies.
(1) Filing: Unless otherwise directed by the Court, one paper copy and one electronic copy of briefs must be filed. The Court will order the filing of additional paper copies for oral argument or if otherwise needed by the Court.
(2) Service: Service of paper copies of briefs is not required if the brief was served electronically on counsel and on any party not represented by counsel. One paper copy of any sealed brief must be served on lead counsel for each party separately represented who is authorized to have access to the sealed brief and on any party not represented by counsel who is authorized to have access to the sealed brief.
(3) Page-Proof Briefs: If the Court allows a deferred appendix, the parties are required to file their page-proof briefs in electronic form only. After the deferred appendix is filed, filing and service of final briefs are governed by (1) and (2) above.