Ga. Ct. App. R. 25 (2019)

(a) Appellant’s Brief.

An appellant’s brief will usually be most helpful to the Court if it includes the items listed below, under appropriate headings and in the order indicated. At a minimum, the appellant’s brief must include items (3), (4), (5), and (7).

(1) For briefs of significant length or complexity, a table of contents and a table of cited authorities, each with page references.

(2) A concise introduction setting out the key issues and arguments on appeal.

(3) A concise jurisdictional statement, which must identify:

(i) The basis for this Court’s appellate jurisdiction. See, e.g., OCGA §§ 5-6-34 and 5-6-35.

(ii) The basis for this Court having jurisdiction instead of the Supreme Court. See, e.g., Ga. Cont. Art. VI, Sec. VI, Pars. II, III: OCGA § 15-3-3.1.

(iii) The filing dates establishing that the appeal is timely. See, e.g., OCGA §§ 5-6-38 and 5-6-39.

(4) The enumeration of errors, which must identify separately and concisely each allegedly erroneous ruling the appellant relies on as a basis for reversal of the judgment on appeal. See OCGA § 5-6-40.

(5) A statement of the case that sets out the material facts relevant to the appeal, describes the relevant proceedings below, and identifies how each enumerated error was preserved for review, with appropriate citations to the record.

(6) For briefs of significant length or complexity, a summary of argument that presents, plainly and concisely, each argument in the order presented in the body of the brief. An effective summary will not merely repeat the argument headings.

(7) The argument, which must cite the authorities relied on and include a concise statement of the applicable standard(s) of review, and which should generally follow the order of the enumeration of errors. Point headings that identify and organize arguments are encouraged.

(b) Appellee’s Brief.

An appellee’s brief will usually be most helpful to the Court if it follows the arrangement set out in Rule 25 (a) except for item (4). Items (3) and (5) may be omitted if the appellee is satisfied with their presentation by the appellant. If an appellee disagrees with the appellant’s statement of the case in whole or in part, the appellee must identify any points of disagreements with supporting citations to the record.

(c) Reply Brief.

If the appellant chooses to file a reply brief, the brief need only include item (7) listed above. For reply briefs of significant length or complexity, including items (1) and (2) is encouraged.

(d) General Provisions.

(1) Unsupported Claim of Error; References to Record and Transcripts.

Any enumeration of error that is not supported in the brief by citation of authority or argument may be deemed abandoned.

(i) Each enumerated error shall be supported in the brief by specific reference to the record or transcript. In the absence of a specific reference, the Court will not search for and may not consider that enumeration.

(ii) A contention that certain matters are not supported by the record may be answered by reference to particular volume and pages where the matters appear.

(2) Citations to the record.

Reference to an electronic record should be indicated by the volume number of the electronic record and the PDF page number within that volume (Vol. Number – PDF Page Number; for example, V2-46).

If the case has previously been up on appeal in this Court, then contact the Clerk’s Office for access to the record in that previous appeal. With a subsequent appeal, the appellate record might contain only filings docketed after the previous appeal was remitted. A party seeking to rely on a record from a previous appeal must file notice of that intent in accordance with Rule 42 (c).

Citations to audio and video recordings should identify the recording itself according to its location in the record and specify the relevant portion of the recording by indicating the time range during which the cited material is found.