Massachusetts Appeals Court

Format

Type

Times New Roman 14 pt, double-spaced

Margins

1-inch margins

Opening brief

11,000 words or 50 pages

Reply brief

4,500 words or 20 pages

What counts

Only parts required by Rule 16(a)(5)-(11) count (issues through conclusion), including headings, footnotes, visual aids, quotations; pages limit applies to monospaced

Rules

Massachusetts Rules of Appellate Procedure — Mass. R. App. P. 20(a)(2)-(4); Mass. R. App. P. 20(a)(2)(A)-(C)

Parts of the brief, in order

1. Cover — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(1), 20(a)(5)
2. CORPORATE DISCLOSURE STATEMENT — If applicable · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(2), 17
3. TABLE OF CONTENTS — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(3)
4. TABLE OF AUTHORITIES — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(4)
5. STATEMENT OF THE ISSUES — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(5)
6. STATEMENT OF THE CASE — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(6)
7. STATEMENT OF FACTS — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(7)
8. SUMMARY OF THE ARGUMENT — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(8)
9. ARGUMENT — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(9)
10. REQUEST FOR ATTORNEY'S FEES AND COSTS — If applicable · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(10)
11. CONCLUSION — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(11)
12. Signature block — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(12)
13. ADDENDUM — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(13)
14. CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(14), 16(k)
15. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE — Required · Mass. R. App. P. 16(a)(15), 13(e)

Argument headings: Argument contains contentions with citations; each issue includes a standard-of-review statement; record cites required for factual assertions.

Standard of review: For each issue, concise statement of the standard of review, in the discussion of the issue or under a separate heading placed before the discussion of the issues (Rule 16(a)(9)(B)).

Record citations: (R.A. II/55) or (RAII/55); transcript (Tr. III/231); addendum (Add. 12)

Record Appendix

Required. Pages are numbered like R.A. 12. (Mass. R. App. P. 18(a), 20(b))

• cover
• table of contents (detailed exhibit listing)
• docket entries
• impoundment orders (if any)
• record materials relied on in chronological order
• findings, memoranda, orders relevant to appeal
• judgment or order appealed from
• notice(s) of appeal

Separately paginated starting at page 1 (cover = page 1); volumes numbered by Roman numeral; e-filed as separate PDF, each file under 50 MB. Addendum (judgment/decision, statutes, unpublished decisions) is part of the brief.

Certificates

• Compliance: Certify compliance with rules on briefs, stating how length compliance was ascertained (font name and size and word count with software name, or monospaced page count)
• Service: Certificate of service per Rule 13
• Corporate disclosure statement per Rule 17

Good to know

• Monospaced option: 12 pt, max 10.5 cpi, 1.5-inch side margins, 50/20 pages.
• Double spacing = no more than 3 lines per vertical inch and 27 lines per page.
• Cross-appeal limits: appellee principal & response 13,000 words/60 pages; appellant response & reply 11,000/50; appellee reply 4,500/20. Amicus 7,500/35.
• Bookmarks and internal links strongly encouraged but not required.
• Informal Brief Pilot Program for self-represented litigants: no TOC/TOA/summary/addendum/format certificate required.

Filing: eFileMA (Tyler) mandatory for attorneys; text-searchable PDF required (Mass. R. E. F. 9); appendix as separate PDF; 50 MB file limit