Me. R. App. P. 10

As amended through November 25, 2024

Rule 10 - MOTIONS AND OTHER PAPERS IN THE LAW COURT

(a)Motions.

(1)General Requirements. Unless another form is prescribed by these Rules, an application to the Law Court for an order or other relief shall be by motion, shall state with particularity the grounds therefor, and shall set forth the order or relief sought, and shall be signed in a manner authorized by Rule 1C. Supporting papers shall be served and filed with the motion. Motions and supporting papers shall be typewritten and shall conform to Rule 1D(d).

(2)Notification; Disclosure of Opponent's Position. A motion must state

(A) that the movant has notified opposing counsel and unrepresented parties, including any incarcerated unrepresented parties, or why the movant was unable to do so;

(B) opposing counsel's and unrepresented parties' positions on the relief requested; and

(C) whether any opposing counsel or unrepresented party intends to file a response to the motion.

(3)Notification of Party by Counsel; Indication of Notification. Any motion filed by counsel representing a party in an appeal that seeks an extension of time or a delay of more than 7 days or that seeks a continuance of any scheduled hearing, oral argument, or other court proceeding, shall indicate that the party represented by counsel filing the motion has been notified of the filing of the motion, and in fact the party represented by counsel shall be notified by counsel of the filing of the motion.

(4) Emergency Motions. A motion seeking emergency or expedited relief must

(A) be preceded by as much advance notice of the intent to file the motion as possible to the clerk, other counsel, and other unrepresented parties;

(B) be labeled "Emergency Motion";

(C) if filed electronically contain the words "Emergency Motion" in the subject line of the email;

(D) state the nature of the emergency and the harm that the movant will suffer if the motion is not granted; and

(E) state the date by which the movant believes the Law Court must act.

(5)Motions for Reconsideration of Orders. A motion for reconsideration of an order of the Law Court, or of a single justice acting on behalf of the Court pursuant to subsection (4) above, shall not be filed except to bring to the Court's attention an error, omission, or new material that could not previously have been presented. A motion to reconsider an order that dismisses or otherwise disposes of an appeal shall be filed with the Clerk of the Law Court within 14 days after the date of the order. No response to a motion for reconsideration of an order shall be filed unless requested by the Law Court.

(b)Action on Motions. The Chief Justice, or another Justice designated by the Chief Justice, may act on motions on behalf of the Court, or may refer motions to the entire Court. All motions will be acted on without oral argument unless otherwise ordered. Motions may be acted upon at any time, without waiting for a response thereto. Motions will not necessarily be granted even though assented to by other parties.

(c) Responses. Any party that plans to file a response to a motion shall do so within 14 days after the motion is filed. The Law Court may shorten or extend the time for responding to any motion and may act on a motion before receiving any response. Any supporting papers shall be served and filed with the response. Responses and supporting papers shall be typewritten and shall conform to Rule 1D(d).

Me. R. App. P. 10

Amended June 6, 2017, effective 9/1/2017; amended July 13, 2022, effective 7/13/2022; amended September 25, 2024, effective 11/1/2024.

Advisory Committee Note - November 2024

This amendment makes seven changes to Rule 10. First, it adds a provision, as subdivision (a)(2), requiring a movant to notify opposing counsel and parties of the motion prior to filing the motion and requiring the motion to (A) either certify that the movant has done so or state why the movant was unable to do so, (B) state the other parties' positions on the motion, and (C) state whether any other party intends to file a response. An opposing party's incarceration is not, by itself, a sufficient justification for failing to notify the opposing party or seek the party's position on the motion. This provision will increase efficiency in the Court's handling of motions.

Second, the amendment adds a provision, as subdivision (a)(4), providing specific requirements for emergency motions. Although emergency motions in the Law Court are rare, the new provision will provide guidance to parties and to the Clerk of the Law Court on how to handle them when they are made.

Third, in subdivision (c), the amendment extends the time for responses to motions from 7 to 14 days. When motions are served by mail, the 7-day period is insufficient to allow a party to receive a motion by mail, draft a response, and mail the response Clerk of the Law Court. Although electronic filing and service of motions will mitigate that problem, the extension of the time for response applies to all motions, rather than just for motions served by mail, for the sake of simplicity. The existing provision that the Court may act on a motion without waiting for a response remains, and therefore the additional time for responses to motions will not significantly delay any appeal.

Fourth, the amendment deletes the requirement, previously appearing as subdivision (b), for a certificate of service in a motion. The requirement is replaced by Rule 1D(e), which requires that a motion contain some indication, but not necessarily a formal certificate of service, that it was served on other parties.

Fifth, the amendment repeals subdivision (d), which governed the form of motions and the number of copies required to be filed. Provisions governing the form of motions are now contained in Rule 1D(d), and filing requirements are contained in Rule 1D(a).

Sixth, subdivision (a)(5), governing motions for reconsideration of orders of the Law Court, is adopted. This new provision is modeled on M.R. Civ. P. 7(b)(5). Motions for reconsideration of decisions of the Law Court continue to be governed by Rule 14(b), as amended. This change coincides with amendments to Rule 1B clarifying the distinction between "decisions" and "orders" of the Law Court. Prior to these amendments, Rule 14(b) could have been understood to govern motions for reconsideration of orders of the Law Court, but contained procedural requirements intended to apply to motions for reconsideration of decisions of the Law Court. New Rule 10(a)(5) clarifies the procedure for seeking reconsideration of orders of the Law Court in the narrow circumstances permitted by the Rule. Orders issued by the Clerk of the Law Court are not governed by this rule but are governed by Rule 12A(b), which provides that certain orders of the Clerk are subject to review by a single justice.

Seventh, the amendment reorganizes and renumbers some of the provisions.

Advisory Committee Note - July 2022

Rule 10 is amended to clarify that motions filed in the Law Court must be signed and that service must be by a method permitted by Rule 5 of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure.

Rule 10 is further amended to remove the provision permitting quotations to appear in 11-point font. As amended, the Rule requires all typed matter other than footnotes to appear in at least 14-point font.

Rule 10 is further amended to permit electronic filing of motions by transmitting a .pdf version of the motion to the Clerk of the Law Court in the manner prescribed by the Clerk in the notice of docketing in the Law Court that the Clerk issues pursuant to Rule 3(a)(2). Unlike filing of electronic copies of briefs under Rule 7A(i)(2), electronic filing of motions pursuant to Rule 10, as amended, is optional and, if used, replaces rather than supplements traditional paper filing.

Restyling Notes - June 2017

Rule 10 relating to filing of motions and other papers in the Law Court other than briefs and appendices is subject to only minor editing except for one substantive change. Rule 10(a)(2) is adopted to require that any motion filed by counsel representing a party that seeks an extension of time or a delay of more than 7 days or seeks a continuance of a scheduled hearing, oral argument, or other proceeding must be noticed to the party that counsel represents. The proposed amendment is designed to eliminate or reduce opportunities for counsel to place blame for delays that they themselves have sought onto either the Court or other parties.

As with briefs, the amended Rule 10(d) requires that the text of motions, other than footnotes or quotations, must be in 14-point font. This is consistent with First Circuit practice.

[Advisory Notes to Rule 10 of former Maine Rules of Appellate Procedure]

Advisory Note - July 1, 2010

Rule 10 is amended to reflect practical experience of the Court in the nine years since the Maine Rules of Appellate Procedure took effect. The rule is changed substantially to: (1) remove the distinction between procedural and substantive motions; (2) require that every motion be accompanied by a certificate that the motion was served on the other parties; and (3) clarify the required format of motions and oppositions. The distinction between procedural and substantive motions is removed because it created confusion in practice, and frequently resulted in the incorrect number of copies of motions and responses being filed. Note also that motions for reconsideration of Law Court decisions are not governed by Rule 10; they are governed by M.R. App. P. 14(b).

The changes to Rule 10 are listed below:

The language in M.R. App. P. 10(a) regarding responses to motions is removed from this subdivision and placed in subdivision (c) of this rule.

Former subdivision 10(b) dealing with procedural motions is replaced with a new subdivision (b) which requires that every motion be served on the other parties and accompanied by a certificate of service on the other parties. Motions filed without a certificate of service may be returned to the party filing the motion.

Former subdivision 10(c) dealing with substantive motions is replaced with a new subdivision (c) which sets the time and requirements for responses to motions.

Subdivision 10(d) is changed to: (1) apply to motions, responses, and other papers filed with the Law Court; (2) clarify that motions need not be bound along the entire left-hand side of the paper, but need only be stapled in the upper-left corner; (3) require the original and one copy be filed for every motion and response; and (4) provide that the filing party shall provide any additional copies to the Court as requested by the Clerk of the Law Court. The Court may request that the filing party file additional copies when it determines that the motion will be considered by the entire Court.

Advisory Notes - January 1, 2001

Rule 10(a) generally tracks the language of M.R. Civ. P. 75B(a) and M.R.U. Crim. P. 39C(a).

Rule 10(b) generally tracks the language of M.R. Civ. P. 75(B)(b). There is no comparable provision of the criminal rules. However, the distinctions made in the civil rules between motions for procedural orders and motions for substantive relief are continued in the new rule in light of the different manner of address of such motions. Procedural motions are generally addressed by the Chief Justice or a single justice. Substantive motions are generally addressed by the Court.

Rule 10(c), relating to substantive motions, follows M.R. Civ. P. 75B(c) and has no criminal counterpart. Both Rules 10(b) and 10(c) are in these rules applicable to both criminal and civil cases. Motions for reconsideration are not considered motions for substantive relief and are separately addressed by M.R. App. P. 14(b).

Rule 10(d) generally follows the similar language of M.R. Civ. P. 75B(d) and M.R.U. Crim. P. 39C(b). The requirement that footnotes and quotations appear in 11 point type is taken from the civil rules. The present criminal rules require only 10 point type.