X § 3 Civil Writ Applications

A. In civil cases, a writ application shall be accompanied by the filing fee set forth in La. R.S. 13:126 and shall contain:

1. An index of all items contained therein, including the required lower court judgments as stated in Section 3(E) of this Rule and other pleadings or documents as stated in Section 3(F) of this Rule;

2. A statement of which of the considerations set forth in Section 1(A) of this Rule is present in the case;

3. A memorandum, not exceeding twenty-five (25) pages in length, containing:

a. A concise statement of the case summarizing the nature of the case and prior proceedings;

b. An assignment of errors in the opinion, judgment, ruling or order complained of;

c. A summary of the argument which should be a succinct but accurate and clear condensation of the argument actually made within the body of the memorandum; it should not be a mere repetition of the headings under which the argument is arranged; and

d. An argument of each assignment of error on the facts and law, addressing particularly why the case is appropriate for review under the considerations stated in Section 1(A) of this Rule.

4. A verification, as required by Rule I, Section 1(F); and

5. The dated lower court judgment, order, or ruling, including any written or transcribed reasons for judgment, and the dated court of appeal’s order and opinion, including any rulings or opinions on rehearing or applications, shall be attached to the writ application and properly indexed.

B. If it is essential to demonstrate why the application should be granted, an appendix containing other pleadings or documents may be filed; however, briefs previously filed in the court of appeal shall not be included. The appendix shall be bound separately from the writ application and shall not exceed twenty-five (25) pages. It shall be filed in original only, with an index reflecting the contents bound at the beginning of the appendix.

If the page limit is to be exceeded, a motion requesting leave of Court must be filed simultaneously with the writ application. Such motions are subject to the filing fees prescribed in Rule II.

C. The Court may, sua sponte, require the application be supplemented with any missing item or any other documentation, information, or materials deemed necessary for the Court’s consideration of the matter.

D. Applications in cases where an application has been previously filed and is pending may refer to the documents or exhibits attached to the previous application without the necessity of submitting additional copies.

Official Comments

Excessive and irrelevant pleadings and documents included with writ applications are burdensome to the Court and are strongly discouraged. In cases where the applicant believes the inclusion of exhibits is absolutely necessary to his or her argument, the applicant should limit the scope of those materials to ensure they relate to the subject matter of the application. For example, if an applicant attaches a deposition, it should be limited to those pages which clearly relate to the subject matter of the application. Ordinarily, there is no need to attach pleadings filed in the lower courts, such as petitions, answers, exceptions, appellate briefs, etc. In no event shall the applicant file more than twenty-five (25) pages of other pleadings or documents. The filing of condensed deposition or trial transcripts, reducing multi-page exhibits to one page, and other artifices designed to circumvent the twenty-five (25) page limit are prohibited and shall be grounds for rejecting the other pleadings and documents. If the Court determines additional materials are necessary for its review, the Court may request supplementation.