Iowa Organization and Procedures of Appellate Courts – 2026
How Iowa's two appellate courts are organised and how they dispose of cases, fifteen rules in three parts. The supreme court's own two rules provide that cases are ordinarily submitted en banc, with the chief justice able to provide for a smaller panel (21.1), and for the absence of the chief justice (21.2). The court of appeals' three cover its policy of disposing justly of a high volume of cases, sitting en banc or in panels, and panel composition. The ten appellate operating procedures then govern the allocation of proceedings between the courts (21.21), participation in and publication of opinions (21.22), correction of opinions (21.23), petitions for rehearing (21.24), opinions dealing with confidential material (21.25), memorandum opinions (21.26), the application to the supreme court for further review (21.27), posting opinions on the Internet (21.28), which version of an opinion controls (21.29), and petitions, applications, requests and motions (21.30).
Browse all 15 rules of the 2026 edition below. Each rule includes the full text, a plain-English summary, committee notes, amendment history, and cross-references to related rules. Use the search box to find rules by keyword or number.