Rule RAP 40 - Opinions and Orders-Issuance and Effective Date(A)Written Opinions and Orders.(1) Appellate court opinions and orders shall be reduced to writing and, except for unanimous actions of the Supreme Court, shall list the names of the members concurring or dissenting and indicate the name of any member who did not participate in the decision.(2) Opinions and orders finally deciding a case on the merits shall include an explanation of the legal reasoning underlying the decision.(B)Time of Announcement. Unless otherwise determined by the Supreme Court, opinions of the Supreme Court will be released for publication on Thursdays. Unless otherwise determined by the Court of Appeals, opinions of the Court of Appeals shall be released on Fridays.(C)Distribution of Copies. Promptly after an opinion is handed down, the clerk shall send a copy to the trial judge, to any intermediate court which made a decision in the case, and to each attorney in the case.(D)Publication.(1) Each opinion rendered by the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals must show on its face whether it is "To Be Published" or "Not To Be Published." The decision as to publication will be made by the court rendering the opinion. Opinions designated "Not To Be Published" are not binding precedent. These opinions may, however, be cited as non-binding authority as permitted by RAP 41.(2) If a motion for discretionary review of an opinion of the Court of Appeals is filed under RAP 44, the opinion may not be published until the Supreme Court has entered an order making a final disposition of that matter. If the motion for discretionary review is denied or withdrawn, whether the opinion shall be published is determined by how the Court of Appeals designated the opinion, unless the Supreme Court directs otherwise. If the motion for discretionary review is granted, the opinion of the Court of Appeals shall not be published unless expressly ordered to be published by the Supreme Court.(E)Withdrawal of Opinions. Parties to an appeal may not by agreement dismiss an appeal and have an opinion withdrawn after it has been issued.(F)Effective Date of Opinions, Orders, and "Opinions and Orders."(1)Effective Date of Opinions and "Opinion and Orders." An opinion or an "opinion and order" is effective upon finality as set forth in section (G) of this rule.(2)Effective Date of Orders. Unless otherwise directed, all orders of an appellate court, including those in original proceedings under RAP 60, are effective upon entry and filing with the clerk. As set forth in RAP 43(D), the court may suspend the effectiveness of certain orders.(G)Finality of Opinions and "Opinion and Orders." This paragraph, RAP 40(G), applies to any decision of an appellate court styled as an "Opinion" or "Opinion and Order." (1) An opinion of the Supreme Court becomes final on the 21st day after the date of its rendition unless a petition under RAP 43 has been timely filed or an extension of time has been granted for that purpose. An opinion of the Court of Appeals becomes final on the 31st day after the date of its rendition unless a petition under RAP 43 or a motion for discretionary review under RAP 44 has been timely filed or an extension of time has been granted for one of those purposes.(2) The filing of a timely motion for discretionary review under RAP 44 suspends finality of the opinion for which review is sought. An order denying the motion or permitting its withdrawal reinstates the opinion of the lower court. If the motion for review is granted, the opinion of the court finally disposing of the matter supersedes all lower court opinions arising from the appeal.(3) In the event of a timely petition for rehearing under RAP 43, (a) if it is in the Supreme Court and is denied, the opinion becomes final immediately upon such denial;(b) if it is in the Supreme Court and is granted and a new or revised opinion is rendered, the new or revised opinion becomes final on the 21st day after the date of its rendition unless otherwise ordered, or unless a further petition under RAP 43 has been timely filed or an extension of time has been granted for that purpose;(c) if it is in the Court of Appeals and is denied, the opinion becomes final on the 31st day after the date the petition was denied unless a motion for discretionary review under RAP 44 has been timely filed; or(d) if it is in the Court of Appeals and is granted, and a new or revised opinion is rendered, the new or revised opinion becomes final on the 31st day after the date of its rendition unless otherwise ordered, or unless a further petition under RAP 43 or a motion for discretionary review under RAP 44 has been timely filed or an extension of time has been granted for one of those purposes.(4) Unless otherwise ordered, in no event shall an opinion become final pending final disposition of a timely petition under RAP 43 or a timely motion for discretionary review under RAP 44; and in every case it shall become final when no such motion or petition has been filed within the time allowed for that purpose.(5) When an opinion has become final or when a dispositive order has been issued, the clerk of the appellate court that rendered it shall forthwith send it to the clerk of the trial court and, if the opinion results from a review of the decision of another appellate court, to the clerk of that court also, a copy of the opinion with an endorsement stamped thereon showing the date upon which it became final, whereupon the clerk of the trial court shall forthwith file the opinion as enclosed in the original record and note the filing on the proper docket. In the event a final opinion directs that an administrative agency, board, or commission conduct further proceedings with respect to such action, the clerk of the trial court shall forthwith remand the action to the administrative agency, board, or commission before which said action originated without further order of the trial court.(6) No mandate shall be required to effectuate the final decision of an appellate court, whether entered by order, opinion, or opinion and order.(H)Non-Final Opinions. Non-final opinions, orders, or opinions and orders may not be cited as binding precedent in any court of this state and may not be cited without indicating the non-final status.(I)Clerical Corrections. The Supreme Court may, on the court's own motion, make clerical corrections to an opinion or opinion and order that do not change its substance until the opinion or opinion and order becomes final. The Court of Appeals may, on the court's own motion, make clerical corrections to an opinion, opinion and order, or order that do not change its substance until the 31st day after the opinion, opinion and order, or order is rendered, unless a petition for rehearing or motion for reconsideration has been filed. Clerical corrections under this rule do not affect the finality of the opinion, order, or opinion and order, and do not affect the deadlines for filing a petition for rehearing or reconsideration under RAP 43 or a motion for discretionary review under RAP 44.Adopted by order 2022-49, eff. 1/1/2023.