Publisher's Synopsis
The Handbook of Practice and Internal Procedures of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit was first published in 1978. That publication anticipated Section 208(a) of the Federal Courts Improvement Act of 1982, 96 Stat. 54, 28 U.S.C. § 2077, which provides, in pertinent part, "[t]he rules for the conduct of the business of each court of appeals, including the operating procedures of such court, shall be published." The Handbook was revised in 1987 to reflect major changes in the operations of the D.C. Circuit. These changes included the implementation of the Civil Appeals Management Plan and, in August 1986, a comprehensive new program for managing the Court's entire caseload (Case Management Plan). The Court also began an appellate mediation program. In 1987 the Court issued a full revision of its General Rules - the first complete revision of those rules in nearly a decade. The 1994 edition of the Handbook accompanied the Court's 1993 revision of its Circuit Rules. The rules were revised and renumbered to parallel more closely the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure. Additionally, while the basic structure of the Case Management Plan remained, significant modifications were adopted, and the Court completely restructured its Appellate Mediation Program. The Handbook has been revised numerous times since then to reflect federal and local rules amendments as well as changes in court practice. This Handbook is a practitioner's guide to the Court's rules and internal case management procedures. Counsel and litigants should bear in mind, however, that the Handbook is for guidance only. The Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and the Court's Circuit Rules, as well as any orders issued in a particular case, dictate the specific requirements for litigating a case in the D.C. Circuit, and counsel's first obligation is to consult and comply with those rules. The Court will continue to revise the Handbook periodically as necessary to reflect changes in its rules and case processing. The Court also encourages practitioners to forward their suggested revisions to the Clerk or the Court's Advisory Committee on Procedures. In publishing the Handbook, the Court seeks to facilitate the efficient disposition of its cases, while maintaining the high standards of appellate litigation and adjudication that are the tradition of the D.C. Circuit.
