US courts of appeals
When are the appellant’s and appellee’s briefs due in a federal court of appeals?
Under the default rule, the appellant must serve and file a brief within 40 days after the record is filed, and the appellee within 30 days after the appellant’s brief is served. Most circuits issue a briefing schedule or local rule that displaces these defaults.
Calculate my deadline- Period
- 40 calendar days
- Trigger
- Filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief
- Rule
- Fed. R. App. P. 31(a)(1)
Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure amended through 2025
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Calculate your deadline
Enter the date of filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief. See the date, cited rule and counting steps.
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Which date starts the 40-day period?
The period runs from the filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief. The default calculation uses filing of the record by the circuit clerk (FRAP 12(c)); other branches use their own trigger.
Count forward from the selected trigger. Confirm the event on the docket or in the service record before entering a date.
Read FRAP 31"The appellant must serve and file a brief within 40 days after the record is filed."
Fed. R. App. P. 31(a)(1)
This period runs from the filing date on the docket. Do not substitute the date of service, the date an order was entered or the day you learned of the filing.
Which date do I enter?How are the 40 calendar days counted?
- Exclude the day of the trigger event.
- Count every following day, including intermediate Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.
- If the last day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, continue to the next day that is not one of those.
Exclude the trigger day and count calendar days under FRAP 26(a).
FRAP 26(a)(1)(C) carries a final Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday to the next open day. FRAP 26(c) adds three days after non-electronic service.
FRAP 26(a) also treats a day on which the clerk’s office is inaccessible as excluded from the last day, and sets the electronic filing cutoff at midnight in the time zone of the circuit clerk’s principal office. Circuit local rules and briefing orders often control; the national calculation does not read them.
Read FRAP 26(a)The calculation gives the ordinary national-rule date. Check relevant holidays, the court’s accessibility and its filing cutoff separately.
Review the filing checklistWhat does a worked calculation look like?
Fictitious example
Assume the filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief on Tuesday, September 1, 2026 (the circuit clerk filed the record on this date and no briefing order was issued), with no order, motion, extension or local closure affecting the result. The record-filing date is excluded and 40 calendar days are counted for the appellant’s principal brief. Day 40 falls on Sunday, October 11, 2026. FRAP 26(a)(1)(C) carries the deadline past Sunday and past the Columbus Day legal holiday on Monday, October 12, to Tuesday, October 13, 2026.
| Step | What is counted | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Filing | Do not count this day | September 1, 2026 |
| Day 1 | Start counting calendar days | September 2, 2026 |
| Day 40 | Last counted day falls on a weekend or legal holiday | October 11, 2026 |
| Adjusted | Next day that is not a weekend or legal holiday | October 13, 2026 |
Can an order, motion or extension change the deadline?
- Extensions
- Extendable for good cause under FRAP 26(b); every circuit regulates extensions by local rule and most limit or refuse repeat extensions. FRAP 31(a)(2) allows a circuit to SHORTEN the period by local rule or order. FRAP 31(c): failure entitles the appellee to move to dismiss the appeal.
- Orders and local rules
- A scheduling order, stipulation approved by the court, standing order or local rule can set a different period and controls over the national default.
- A briefing order or circuit local rule normally controls and must be checked first.
- The reply brief period and the seven-day pre-argument backstop are not calculated here.
What should I check before filing?
These checks help you review the result. They do not activate a calendar date or certify that the deadline applies.
Common questions
Find answers about when this 40-day period starts, how it is counted, what can change it and how to keep your calculation.
Starting the clock
Does the clock start on the filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief, or when I first learned of it?
The period runs from the filing of the record by the circuit clerk, or service of the appellant’s brief as the rule defines it, not from the day you read about it, received a courtesy copy or attended a hearing. Use the date shown on the docket or in the service record.
Read FRAP 31Do I add three days because the paper was served by mail?
FRAP 26(c) adds three days only after the listed non-electronic methods of service, such as mail. Electronic service through the court’s filing system does not add days. Check how service was actually made before adding anything.
FRAP 26(c)Counting days and filing
Is it 40 calendar days or business days?
Calendar days. Count intermediate weekends and holidays. If the final day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, FRAP 26(a) carries it forward to the next day that is not one of those.
FRAP 26(a)Which time zone and filing cutoff apply?
Under FRAP 26(a)(4), electronic filing ends at midnight in the time zone of the circuit clerk’s principal office unless a different time is set. Paper filing ends when the clerk’s office is scheduled to close. This calculator does not verify either fact.
FRAP 26(a)What if the court is inaccessible on the last day?
FRAP 26(a)(3) extends the period to the first accessible day that is not a weekend or legal holiday when the clerk’s office is inaccessible on the last day. Check the circuit’s closure notices and orders.
FRAP 26(a)Extensions and local rules
Can the court extend this deadline?
Extendable for good cause under FRAP 26(b); every circuit regulates extensions by local rule and most limit or refuse repeat extensions. FRAP 31(a)(2) allows a circuit to SHORTEN the period by local rule or order. FRAP 31(c): failure entitles the appellee to move to dismiss the appeal. A request does not itself extend the period, and no discretionary extension is calculated here.
Read FRAP 31Do local rules, standing orders or a scheduling order change the date?
They can. Many courts set their own periods by local rule, standing order or case-specific order, and those control over the national default. This calculator gives the national-rule date only; compare it with any order in the case before relying on it.
Choosing the right calculator
Does this calculator decide whether the rule applies to my case?
No. It calculates a period from the date you provide under the cited rule. It does not decide whether the rule governs your filing, whether an exception applies, or whether the filing has merit. Those questions need separate review.
Can I calculate the deadline without an account?
Yes. Enter the trigger date to see the free national-rule calculation, citation, counting steps and warnings. You can add court context after the result. Missing court review keeps the result provisional.
Results, records and your case
What is included in an Evidence Record?
The retained inputs, result, cited rule, calculation working, warnings and review state. The PDF includes a payload digest and retained-data appendix, and the record can be verified against its fingerprint later. It records the calculation, not a guarantee of legal correctness.
Does saving to a case activate the calendar?
Not automatically. Provisional records remain subject to review. A separately labeled manual date does not alter the original calculation.
Official sources and review
The period and the counting method come from different provisions. The official source is the court’s published rules; the reading links open the rule text at the Legal Information Institute.
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Fed. R. App. P. 31(a)(1) | Trigger and period |
| FRAP 26(a) | Counting, legal holidays and the last day |
| FRAP 26(c) | Three added days after non-electronic service |
Rule record reviewed . Guide sources checked . Next source check .
Published by Deadline Engine. This tool calculates the ordinary period under the cited rule. It does not decide whether the rule applies, obtain an extension or file anything for you.