Me. R. App. P. 1B

As amended through November 25, 2024

Rule 1B - DEFINITIONS

Unless specified to the contrary by statute or these Rules, the following words, whenever used in these Rules shall have the following meanings:

(a) The term "appellant's attorney" or "appellee's attorney" or any like term shall include the party appearing without counsel, and the word "appellant" or "appellee" or any like term shall include the party appearing with counsel.

(b) The word "court" or "trial court" shall include any Unified Criminal Docket, the Business and Consumer Docket, any judge of the Probate Court, any judge of the District Court, any justice of the Superior Court, any single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, and any administrative agency from which an appeal lies directly to the Law Court.

(c) The term "plaintiff's attorney" or "defendant's attorney" or any like term shall include the party appearing without counsel, and the word plaintiff" or "defendant" or any like term shall include the party appearing with counsel.

(d) The word "reporter" means a court reporter, the Office of Transcript Operations, or a transcriber of an electronically recorded record.

(e) The term "docket entries" shall include case information maintained by the trial court clerk in the registry of actions.

(f) The term "decision of the Law Court" or "decision resolving the appeal" or any like term shall mean a decision of the Law Court reported pursuant to Rule 12(c) resolving an appeal.

(g) The term "order of the Law Court" or any like term shall mean an order signed by one or more justices on behalf of the Law Court other than a decision of the Law Court, including an order acting on a motion pursuant to Rule 10(b).

Me. R. App. P. 1B

Adopted June 6, 2017, effective 9/1/2017; amended October 8, 2021, effective 10/8/2021; amended September 25, 2024, effective 11/1/2024.

Advisory Committee Note - November 2024

This amendment clarifies the distinction between "decisions" and "orders" of the Law Court by defining those terms in Rule 1B(f) and (g). This change coincides with the adoption of new Rule 10(a)(5) governing motions for reconsideration of orders of the Law Court, and amendment of Rule 14(b) governing motions for reconsideration of decisions of the Law Court.

Advisory Note - October 2021

Rule 1B is amended by adding a definition for the term "docket entries" that includes case information maintained by the trial court clerk in the registry of actions in a court or region that has implemented an electronic case management and filing system.

Restyling Notes - June 2017

Rule 1B is former Rule 16 relating to time computations. The principal changes from Rule 16 render the numbering of subdivisions consistent with the rest of the rules and add reference to a Unified Criminal Docket and the Business and Consumer Docket in addressing the definition of "trial court" and add a reference to the Office of Transcript Operations in the definition of the word "reporter."

[Advisory Notes to former Rule 16, now Rule 1B, of Maine Rules of Appellate Procedure]

Advisory Notes - July 1, 2010

The amendment to Rule 16(2) clarifies that, unless the context requires otherwise, state administrative agencies from which there is a direct appeal to the Law Court are treated as if the agency was the trial court for purpose of application of these rules. The chief administrative executive of the agency would be treated as if that person were the clerk of the trial court.

Advisory Notes - September 10, 2001

The definitions in proposed Rule 16 are derived from the definitions in M.R. Civ. P. 83. The principal change in the definitions is that the definitions do not include a definition for the "clerk." See M.R. Civ. P. 83(2). Within the appellate rules, the Clerk of the Law Court is usually referred to as the Clerk of the Law Court, other references to clerk are usually references to the clerk of the appropriate trial court. Such references are easily determinable from the context of the rule but could be confused by a limiting definition. The term "reporter" is also defined in Rule 5(a). The other significant changes from Rule 83 are: (a) the definition of the word "court" is expanded to include reference to judges of probate; and (b) the definition indicating that references to parties or attorneys are interchangeable regardless of whether a party is represented or not is expanded by the references in subparagraph (1) to appellant and appellee.