Book notes: Jon O. Newman & Marin K. Levy, Written & Unwritten: The Rules, Internal Procedures, and Customs of the United States Courts of Appeals (2024)

 

Judge Jon Newman and Professor Marin Levy's Written & Unwritten is a useful compendium of those rules that aren't found in the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure.  From the introductory material:

[T]he book collects the differing local rules and internal procedures of each court of appeals.  In-depth interviews of the chief judges of all 13 circuits and surveys of all clerks of court reveal previously undisclosed practices and customs.

And from the Foreword by Associate Justice (Ret.) Stephen Breyer:

[The authors] have compiled and organized the different rules, practices, customs, both written and unwritten, that the federal courts of appeals use and follow as their judges carry out their jobs.  The book means that lawyers can more readily find out how to present their cases in different courts.

The book is not organized by each circuit court of appeals, but by subject matter.  The chapter titles indicate the scope of the local rules and procedures surveyed:

1. The Chief Judge of a Circuit
2. Administrative Structure
3. Calendars, Panels, and Assignment of Cases
4. Motions
5. Expedited Appeals
6. Briefs of Parties and Amici Curiae
7. Oral Argument
8. Precedential Opinions
9. Non-Precedential Opinions
10. En Bank Procedures
11. Promoting the Expeditious Disposition of Appeals
12. Death Penalty Cases
13. Senior Judges
14. Judicial Councils and Judicial Conferences
15. Information on Websites
16. Miscellaneous Provisions

If you are interested in a particular court, you will find the index invaluable.  Under the index heading "Eighth Circuit" I counted 74 sub-headings, addressing topics such as attorney discipline, briefs, motions, opinions, oral arguments, terms of court, and website links.  Several of the sub-headings cover more obscure topics such as assignment of cases and terms of court.

The book may be more useful to some appellate practitioners than others.  If you practice in more than one federal circuit court of appeals, this is a very helpful book.  If you only practice in the Eighth Circuit, for example, the book might still be a handy tool for familiarizing yourself with these local rules and procedures - and it will be useful as an index for tracking these matters down, thus making these rules and procedures more accessible.  Attorneys practicing solely in state courts might not find the book as useful.

 Comments are welcome!