Briefs

6.903(1) Form of briefs. a. Reproduction. A brief must show clear black text on a white background. A brief filed in paper may be reproduced by any process that yields a clear black image on white paper. The paper must be opaque and unglazed. Briefs filed in paper must comply with Iowa Rule of Electronic Procedure 16.303. b. Images. Charts, diagrams, graphs, photographs, or other images may be included in a brief; however, images depicting a person are not permitted without leave of the appellate court. Images that contain information considered confidential or protected by statute, rule, or court order may not be included in a brief. To the extent practicable, text in charts, diagrams, or graphs should follow the requirements in rule 6.903(1)(g). c. Form of front covers. The front covers of briefs must contain: (1) The name of the court, any district court number, and the appellate number of the case. (2) The caption on appeal. See rule 6.152(2). (3) The nature of the proceeding (e.g., appeal, certiorari) and the name of the court and judge, agency, or board whose decision is under review. (4) The title of the document (e.g., Brief for Appellant). (5) The name, address, telephone number, and email address of counsel or the self-represented party filing the brief. d. Searchable .pdfs. Every brief must be filed as a searchable .pdf document. e. Document size; line spacing; margins. The brief must be an 8 1/2 by 11 inch document. The text must be double-spaced, but quotations more than 50 words long may be indented and single-spaced. Headings and footnotes may be single-spaced. Margins must be 1 inch on all sides. f. Page numbering. Page numbers must be located at the bottom center of each page. The pages must be numbered consecutively using Arabic whole numbers. The cover page must be numbered as page one. Any blank pages must be numbered. Roman numerals may not be used as page numbers. Page numbers must match the digital page numbers of the electronic document. g. Typeface. Either a proportionally spaced or a monospaced typeface may be used. (1) A proportionally spaced typeface must include serifs, but sans-serif type may be used in headings and captions. A proportionally spaced typeface must be 14-point or larger for all text, including footnotes. Examples of proportionally spaced typeface with serifs that can be used in the body of a brief are Baskerville Old Face, Bookman Old Style, Cambria, Century Schoolbook, Garamond, Georgia, or Times New Roman. Ch 6, p.24 APPELLATE PROCEDURE December 2025 (2) A monospaced typeface may not contain more than 10 1/2 characters per inch for all text, including footnotes. Examples of monospaced typeface that can be used in the body of a brief are Courier 12-point and Consolas 12-point. h. Type styles. A brief must be set in a plain style. Italics or boldface may be used for emphasis. Case names must be italicized or underlined. i. Length. The maximum length of a brief is determined by whether it is printed or handwritten. (1) Proportionally spaced typeface. A brief using proportionally spaced typeface may contain no more than 13,000 words. A reply brief may contain no more than half of the type volume specified for a brief. Headings, footnotes, and quotations count toward the word limitation. Captions, tables of contents, tables of authorities, statements of the issues, signature blocks, and certificates do not count toward the word limitation. (2) Monospaced typeface. A brief using a monospaced typeface may contain no more than 1,300 lines of text. A reply brief may contain no more than half of the type volume specified for a brief. Headings, footnotes, and quotations count toward the line limitation. Captions, tables of contents, tables of authorities, statements of the issues, signature blocks, and certificates do not count toward the line limitation. (3) Handwritten briefs. A brief that is handwritten may not exceed 50 pages. Reply briefs may not exceed 25 pages. Headings, footnotes, and quotations count toward the page limitation. Captions, tables of contents, tables of authorities, statements of the issues, signature blocks, and certificates do not count toward the page limitation. (4) Certificate of compliance. A brief submitted under rule 6.903(1)(i)(1)–(2) must include a certificate of compliance using rule 6.1401—Form 7: Certificate of Compliance with Typeface Requirements and Type-Volume Limitation for Briefs. j. Printing or duplicating taxed as costs. To the extent reasonable, the costs of printing or duplicating a brief may be taxed in the appellate court as costs. Reasonable printing or duplicating costs may not exceed actual costs or $1 per page, whichever is lower, unless otherwise ordered by the appropriate appellate court. The costs of any printing or duplication not required by these rules may not be taxed as costs. COMMENT: Rule 6.903(1)(b). Parties may include images useful to the appellate courts, such as boundary-dispute maps, accident- reconstruction diagrams, and particularly relevant photographs. Parties are discouraged from including or seeking leave to include gratuitous or inflammatory images, such as autopsy photos, photos depicting injuries or bodily fluids, and other images that unnecessarily invade the privacy of a party or other person. 6.903(2) Appellant’s brief. a. Contents. The appellant’s brief must contain all of the following under appropriate headings and in the following order: (1) Table of contents. A table of contents containing page references. (2) Table of authorities. A table of authorities containing a list of cases alphabetically arranged, statutes, and other authorities cited with references to all pages of the brief where they are cited. (3) Statement of the issues presented for review. A statement of the issues presented for review. Each issue must be numbered and stated separately in the same order as presented in the argument. (4) Routing statement. A routing statement indicating whether the case should be retained by the supreme court or transferred to the court of appeals with reference to the applicable criteria in