More Info
Search

First District Approves Amendments to Local Rules Effective 2/1/2026

Notice of Amendments to Local Rules – Effective February 1, 2026

After public comments, the First District Court of Appeals has approved amendments to its Local Rules. These changes are intended to improve clarity and enhance the efficiency of court operations. The rules go into effect on February 1, 2026.

Summary of Amendments:

  • Rule Renumbering: Rules 4.1, 4.2, and 22 have been renumbered to align with the Ohio Rules of Appellate Procedure.
  • Forms: Forms will no longer be embedded in the rules. Instead, forms will be available on the Court’s website.
  • Initiating Appeals: Loc.R. 3.1(C) modified to specify how parties are to serve the notice of appeal and docket statement.
  • Appointed Counsel: Loc.R. 3.4(A) modified to clarify that appointment of counsel may be requested in parental termination and dependency cases in addition to criminal cases.
    • Loc.R. 3.4(C) added to provide clarity as to the scope of appointments of counsel in this court.
    • Loc.R. 3.4(D): modified to make clear that payment of attorney’s fees must also be submitted via the Ohio Public Defender’s Court Appointed Counsel Billing System (CABS).
    • Loc.R. 3.4(E): added to address those situations where counsel is appointed by the court in cases other than criminal, dependency, or parental termination.
  • Motions to Stay: Rule 7: rule renumbered and content modified to address those instances where application for stay in the trial court is not required.
  • Bail in Criminal Cases: Rule 8: Renumbered and the required content of motion clarified.
  • Exhibits: Loc.R. 9(C) and (D): these two subsections were added to provide parties/attorneys with clarity as to where to find exhibits and how to supplement the record when exhibits are missing.
  • Record: Loc.R. 10: rule modified to set forth the information required to be included in motions for extension of time for the record due to court reporter delay.
    • Removes the requirement for the court reporter to email an electronic copy of the transcript of proceedings to the Court.
  • E-filing: Loc.R. 13.1: removes the requirement for the party to provide a proposed order when submitting a motion to the Court.
    • Loc.R. 13.1 modified to address filing fees and when such fees will be collected by the clerk of courts.
    • Loc.R. 13.1(B) modified to provide clarity as to the processing of e-filed documents and when an electronic file stamp is added to a document.
  • Extensions of Time: Loc.R. 14(A) and (B) modified to provide clarity that the notice of automatic extension is available in those regular calendar cases that receive expedited treatment (as noted in the Court’s scheduling order)
    • Loc.R. 14(D): modified to provide clarity that notice of automatic extensions of time are not permitted in abortion bypass, parental termination, denial of bond, or interlocutory Marsy’s Law appeals. Further, notice of automatic extensions of time are not permitted if a notice of oral argument or submission on briefs has been issued.
  • Motions: Loc.R. 15 modified to set forth page limits and formatting requirements for motions filed before this Court.
  • Briefs: Loc.R. 16.1 modified to make clear that any order appellant seeks the Court to review, in addition to the final order, must be attached to the brief (i.e. the conviction and sentence entry must be attached and the entry denying a motion to suppress if such decision is being challenged on appeal).
    • Loc.R. 16.1(B): addresses the content of the appellee’s brief and to address those situations in which appellee does not wish to file a brief.
    • Loc.R.16.1(D) provides clarity as to how to cite multiple transcripts that are not consecutively paginated.
  • Filings: Loc.R. 19(F) modified to address late filings of any kind, not just briefs.
  • Oral Argument:  Loc.R. 21 modified to provide clarity that the Court may deny or vacate arguments in certain cases and also sets forth the timing requirement for reporting a scheduling conflict to the Court’s assignment commissioner.
  • *New Artificial Intelligence Rule: Loc.R. 45 added and addresses the emerging use of generative artificial intelligence in court filings.
  • Original Actions: Loc.R. 33 revised to include provisions for discovery extensions, case management, and docket statements.

In addition, the Court adopted revisions to its criminal and civil docket statements. Additionally, the Court adopted a docket statement for original actions. These docket statements will be available on the Court’s website: https://firstdistrictcoa.org/forms/

The rules, effective February 1, 2026, can be found here.

Search