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STATE OF CONNECTICUT
SUPREME COURT
APPELLATE COURT
CARL D. CICCHETTI 231 CAPITOL AVENUE
CHIEF CLERK HARTFORD, CT 06106
(860) 757-2200
RENÉ L. ROBERTSON
DEPUTY CHIEF CLERK
Effective January 2024
Briefing Guidelines
Note: If you are exempt or excluded from E-Filing per Practice Book § 60-8,
please click here (Page 4).
Electronic Briefing
Practice Book § 67-2A et seq. control and provide greater detail.
Include "Filed Under the Electronic Briefing Rules" at the top center of
the cover.
You may file a party appendix in compliance with Practice Book § 67-8.
If you do include an appendix, the brief and appendix shall be
uploaded as a single text-searchable PDF.
Two legible photocopies of the brief and appendix, if any, shall be filed
with the Appellate Clerk.
o The brief shall be single-sided, and the appendix may be single-
or double-sided. The appendix may be bound separately or with
the brief. If it is bound separately, it must include a numbered
cover page. All cover pages must be white paper.
Include internal hyperlinks for citations to items included in the party
appendix. Internal hyperlinks to other parts of the brief are
recommended. If you cite to documents in the clerk appendix, do not
hyperlink to them. External hyperlinks will be treated as plain text.
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The following word limits apply: appellant brief and appellee brief
(13,500), appellant reply brief (6500), cross-appellant combined brief
(18,000), cross-appellee combined brief (16,000), cross-appellant reply
brief (6500) and amicus brief (4000).
o The cover page, the table of contents, the table of authorities,
the statement of issues, party appendices, certifications and the
signature block do not count toward the word limit.
o When a claim relies on the state constitution as an independent
ground for relief, the clerk shall, upon request, grant an
additional 2000 words for the appellant and appellee briefs and
an additional 800 words for the reply brief, which words are only
to be used for the state constitutional argument.
Use a 12 point serif font for all text except headings, which must be a
14 point serif font. Fonts must be embedded.
o Serif fonts include but are not limited to: Baskerville Old Style,
Century Schoolbook, Garamond, Georgia, Iskoola Pota, Sagona &
Times New Roman
o Sans-serif fonts, which shall not be used, include: Arial, Calibri,
Tahoma & Verdana
Page format: Line spacing must be between 1.3x and 1.5x and must be
uniform throughout; 1½ inch margins on all sides; left aligned text.
Footnotes shall have the same format as body text. Block quotes shall
have the same format as body text except that they shall be indented
once.
Use bold face or italic for emphasis. Do not use underlining.
Sections must be marked sequentially using numbers or letters.
Increased use of subheadings is recommended.
Bullets should be used to delineate examples or support for argument.
Starting with the cover, and including the appendix, number each page
"Page [page number] of [total number of pages]," e.g. "Page 2 of 5."
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o If the paper appendix is large enough to require binding
separate from the brief, include the appendix' cover page in the
PDF to ensure that the page numbering scheme is consistent.
Bookmarks are required and must link to sections of the brief and
appendix. Additional information can be found in the Guide to
Electronic Briefing in the Supreme and Appellate Courts on the
Supreme and Appellate Courts' E-Services self-help page.
Certifications are required which shall include the word count of the
brief, a statement that the electronic brief is filed in compliance with
the Practice Book, and a list of approved deviations, or that no
deviations were requested/approved. See Practice Book § 67-2A (g).
To request a deviation from this format, a filer may file a Request
Regarding Electronic Briefing Requirements
1
stating both the
compelling reason for the request and the modification, e.g. a request
that one not be required to include bookmarks, sought.
Visual aids—images, photographs, graphs, illustrations, diagrams,
charts or tables
2
—may be included to better present information or
arguments but should not be used in excess. Visual aids have the
following requirements:
o Must not include material that is confidential or otherwise
sealed from disclosure, that contains personal identifying
information protected by law, that depicts a minor or that is of
an explicit sexual nature.
o Must be supported by appropriate citation, if applicable.
o Must be a reproduction of materials in the record or derived
from information in the record.
o If a reproduction of material in the record differs in size from
such material, include a footnote on the page it appears stating
1
The E-Filing path for this document is in the motions section.
2
Videos may not be included.
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there has been a reduction or enlargement and the dimensions
of the original.
o Must be of such quality that ensures a legible and accurate
representation of the material, including color
3
if relevant.
o Any words contained must be included in the word count.
Briefing for Filers Exempt or Excluded from E-Filing
Practice Book § 67-2 et seq. control and provide greater detail.
You may file a party appendix in compliance with Practice Book § 67-8.
Two legible photocopies of the brief and appendix, if any, shall be filed
with the Appellate Clerk.
o The brief shall be single-sided, and the appendix may be single-
or double-sided. The appendix may be bound separately or with
the brief. If it is bound separately, it must include a numbered
cover page. All cover pages must be white paper.
The following page limits apply: appellant brief and appellee brief
(35), appellant reply brief (15), cross-appellant combined brief (50),
cross-appellee combined brief (40), cross-appellant reply brief (15) and
amicus brief (10).
o Where a claim relies on the state constitution as an independent
ground for relief, the clerk shall, upon request, grant an
additional five pages for the appellant and appellee briefs, and
an additional two pages for the reply brief, which pages are to be
used for the state constitutional argument only
Use 12 point or larger Arial or Univers for all text.
3
A color photograph marked or admitted as an exhibit in the trial
court may only be reproduced in color.
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Page format: 8½ by 11 inch paper; double spaced (footnotes and block
quotes may be single spaced); margins of 1 inch at top and bottom, 1¼
inch at left and ½ inch at right
Starting with the cover, and including the appendix, number each page
"Page [page number] of [total number of pages]," e.g. "Page 5 of 5." If
the appendix is large enough to require binding separate from the
brief, include the cover page of the appendix in the page numbering
scheme.
