COURT OF APPEALS OF MARYLAND Rules and Regulations Respecting Appeals, in Effect March 1, 1920 APPEALS FROM COURTS OF LAW. 1. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 4.) Formal writs of error shall, in all cases, be dispensed with, and the party applying to have the record removed, as upon writ of error, in cases where by law writs of error are allowable, shall, by brief petition, addressed to the court in which the case was tried, plainly designate the points or questions of law by the decision of which he feels aggrieved; which application so to remove the record, shall be allowed as of right; and no point or question not thus plainly designated in such application shall be heard or determined by the Court of Appeals. 2. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 4.) because of a question of law having been thereby submitted to the jury, unless it appear, from the record, that an objection thereto for such defect was taken at the trial; nor shall any question arise in the Court of Appeals as to the insufficiency of evidence to support any instruction actually granted, unless it appear that such question was distinctly made to and decided by the court below. 5. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 10.) Bills of exception shall be so prepared as only to present to the Court of Appeals the rulings of the court below upon some matter of law, and shall contain only such statement of facts as may be necessary to explain the bearing of the rulings upon the isAll appeals, or writs of error, allowed from sues or questions involved; and if the facts any judgment or determination of a court of are undisputed, they shall be stated as facts, law, to the Court of Appeals of this state, and the evidence from which they are deducother than from decisions on questions aris- ed shall not be set out; and if disputed, it ing under the insolvent law, shall be taken shall be sufficient to state that evidence was within two months from the date of such adduced tending to prove them, instead of judgment or determination, and not after-setting out the evidence in detail; but if a wards; and the transcript of the record shall defect of proof be the ground of the ruling or be transmitted to the Court of Appeals with-exception, then the particulars in which the in three months from the time of the appeal taken, or writ of error allowed. proof is supposed to be defective shall be briefly stated, and all the evidence offered in anywise connected with such supposed defect, shall be set out in the bill of exception. And it shall be the duty of the judges in the courts below to require exceptions to be prepared in accordance with this rule. 6. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 12.) 3. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 4.) All appeals allowed from decisions of questions arising under the insolvent law shall be taken within thirty days from the time of the decision made, and a transcript of the record shall be transmitted to the clerk of this court within sixty days from the date In no bill of exception shall any patent, of the decision appealed from; but the ex-deed, will, or other documentary evidence be ecution or effect of any judgment, decree, de- inserted at length, but shall only be stated cision or order so appealed from shall not briefly, according to its import and effect, unbe suspended or stayed, unless a bond shall less the nature of the question raised and be given in such penalty and condition, and decided render it necessary that it should be with such security as the lower court may inserted in extenso; nor shall any document prescribe and approve. be more than once inserted at large in any transcript to be sent to the Court of Appeals. And it shall be the duty of the judges of the In no case shall the Court of Appeals de- courts below to require exceptions to be precide any point or question which does not pared in accordance with this rule. Either plainly appear by the record to have been party, however, shall have the right to have tried and decided by the court below; and any or all of such documentary proof insertno instruction actually given, shall be deemed at length, it being stated in the exception ed to be defective by reason of any assump-at whose instance the same is so inserted, tion therein of any fact by the said court, or that costs may be awarded as the matter so (vii) 4. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 4.) 111 A. incorporated may be deemed proper or not to have been set out in full, by the appellate court. 7. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 13.) In making up the transcript of records to be transmitted to the Court of Appeals, the clerks of the courts below shall omit from such transcripts the formal headings and commencement of the record, stating only the titling of the case, and the time of the commencement of the suit or proceedings; they shall also omit all writs, or original process for appearance, where the party has appeared; all entries of continuances and imparlances; all entries of motions and rules to declare or plead; all entries of applications for continuances, for commissions, or for warrants of resurvey, and the affidavits in support thereof, together with the rulings of the court on such applications; all entries of motions or rules of security for costs, together with the proceedings and rulings thereon; all entries of empannelling, swearing, and names of jurors, and all other merely incidental motions and rules made in the progress of the cause; all pleadings withdrawn, waived or superseded by amendment; all commissions to take testimony and the formal returns thereto, and all warrants of resurvey, the clerk stating the time of issue and return of such warrant; all replevin, retorno habendo, and appeal bonds, and affidavits filed on taking appeals; all formal entries of motions for new trials, and the rulings thereon, together with the affidavits and other evidence used on such motions, the clerk stating in lieu thereof, the fact of such motion being made, and how disposed of by the court, unless, where any of the foregoing matters or proceedings may be used as evidence in the cause, or where some question may arise in regard thereto, reviewable by the Court of Appeals, then, so much only of any such matter or proceedings as may be used in evidence, or as appertain to the decision or determination desired to be reviewed, shall be incorporated in the transcript, and no more; the intent being to avoid incorporating in the transcript any matter or thing not material to the full and fair presentation of the questions to be reviewed by the appellate court. 8. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 22.) Section 1. In all cases where judgments shall be reversed or affirmed by the Court of Appeals, and it shall appear to the court that a new trial ought to be had, such new trial shall be awarded, and a certified copy of the opinion and judgment of the Court of Appeals shall be transmitted forthwith to the court from which the appeal was taken, to the end that said cause may be again tried as if it had never been tried; and no writ of procedendo, with transcript of record, shall be transmitted, as heretofore practised. Sec. 2. When an appeal is dismissed or a judgment or decree is affirmed or reversed without being remanded, the clerk of this court shall transmit a copy of the docket entries, under the seal of the court, to the court from which the appeal is taken, or writ of error granted, as soon as practicable, not later than thirty days after the case is disposed of by this court. APPEALS FROM COURTS OF EQUITY. 9. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 32.) All appeals allowed from decrees or orders of courts of equity shall be taken and entered within two months from the date of the decree or order appealed from, and not afterwards; unless it shall be alleged on oath fraud or mistake, in which case the appeal that such decree or order was obtained by shall be entered within two months from the time of the discovery of the fraud or mis take, and not afterwards. 10. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 33.) All transcripts of records, on appeals from courts of equity, shall be made and transmitted to the Court of Appeals within three months from the time of the appeal prayed; but on appeals taken as provided by section 31 of article 5 of the Code of Public General Laws, the transcript of the record shall be made and transmitted to the Court of Appeals forthwith after the appeal prayed. 11. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 34.) In making up the transcript of the record of equity proceedings to be transmitted to the Court of Appeals, it shall be the duty of the clerk of the court from which the appeal may be taken, to omit therefrom the formal heading and commencement of the record, stating only the titling of the cause and the time of the commencement of the proceedings; he shall omit all subpoenas and other process for appearance of parties if parties have appeared; all orders and certificates of publication stating in lieu thereof the date of such order, the period of publication required, how published, and the time fixed for appearance of parties thereunder; all commissions to appoint guardians and orders to take testimony, and the formal returns thereto, stating in lieu thereof the fact and time of issuing such commissions, and passing such orders and the time of the return of such testimony; all entries of continuances; all injunction bonds, receivers' bonds, trustees' bonds, appeal bonds, and affidavits filed on appeal; all proceedings in the cause subsequent to the decree or order appealed from; and all merely collateral proceedings not in anywise involved in the matter of appeal, and which cannot be material to the hearing and decision of the case by the Court of Appeals; any party to the appeal, (111 A.) however, shall have the right to direct any properly have been included, it may be directparticular part of the proceedings of the ed by the Court of Appeals to be printed, on cause, that would otherwise be omitted, to be application of any of the parties, or of its incorporated in the transcript, the clerk stat- own motion, or such supplemental printing ing at whose instance the same is inserted, may be obviated by the use of the original that costs may be awarded, as the matter so transcript, when such use is authorized by directed to be incorporated may be deemed the court as being sufficient for the purpose material or not by the Court of Appeals. of the hearing and decision of the case. If a party to the appeal shall fail to file a memorandum or reply statement, as provided by this rule, the clerk of this court shall omit from the record as printed all matter which the memorandum of the party acting under the rule shall have designated as proper to be so omitted. The provisions of this rule or of rule 12, shall not have the effect of extending the time limited by other existing rules for the transmission of records to this court. 12. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 35.) Whenever deeds, records or other documentary evidence are used in any equity cause, the purport and substance only of such deeds, records or other instruments shall be stated, and they shall not be set out in full in any case, except where some question arises upon the construction or validity thereof, and transcripts of records in equity causes shall be prepared in accordance with this rule. Any party to the appeal, however, shall have the right to direct any or all of such documentary proof to be inserted at length. the clerk stating at whose instance the same is so inserted that costs may be awarded as the matter so incorporated may be deemed proper or not, by the Court of Appeals, to have been set out in full. 13. 14. When the questions presented by an appeal can be determined by the Court of Appeals without an examination of all the pleadings and evidence, the parties, with the approval of the circuit court or the judge thereof, may prepare and sign a statement of the case showing how the questions arose and were decided and setting forth so much only of the facts alleged and proved, or sought to be proved, as is essential to a decision of such questions by the appellate court. Such statement, when filed in the office of the clerk of the circuit court, shall be treated as superseding, for the purposes of the appeal, all parts of the record other than the decree from which the appeal is taken, and, together with such decree, shall be copied and certified to the appellate court as the record on appeal. APPEALS FROM THE ORPHANS' Before the transcript of the record is transmitted to this court, and at least ten days before the beginning of the term of this court to which the record is to be transmitted, unless a shorter time prior thereto shall be agreed upon by the parties, the appellant may file with the clerk of the court from which the appeal is taken, to be attached to the transcript, a memorandum designating such portions of the record as the appellant may consider unnecessary to be included in the printed record in this court, and a similar right may be exercised by the appellee, provided that either party exercising such right shall forthwith serve a copy of the All appeals allowed from orders or decrees memorandum so filed, upon the solicitor of of the orphans' courts to the Court of Apthe opposite party, who shall file within five peals, shall be taken and entered within days thereafter, or within a shorter time if thirty days after such order or decree apagreed upon by the parties, a statement indi- pealed from; and the register of wills shall cating the extent to which, if at all, the pro- make out and transmit to the Court of Apposal embodied in the memorandum filed by peals, under his hand and the seal of his ofthe other party to the appeal is assented to, fice, a transcript of the record of proceedings and if no such reply statement is filed with-in such case, within thirty days after the apin the time prescribed, the proposed omis- peal prayed; but in such transcript no sions from the printed record shall be re-paper or proceeding, not necessary to the garded as having been assented to as a whole. determination of the appeal shall be incorpo The clerk of this court shall cause to be omitted from the record as printed all matter which the memoranda and statements filed by the parties shall agree in designating as not necessary to be printed, and in the particulars in which the memoranda and statements do not so agree, he shall note at whose instance the matter is included in the printed record. If it shall subsequently develop that any portion of the transcript, which has been omitted from the record as printed, should rated. 15. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 62.) APPEALS FROM THE COMMISSIONER 16. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 83.) in his return thereto, transmit to the Court of Appeals only so much of the proceedings remaining of record in the inferior court as may be necessary to correct the alleged errors or defect in the transcript first sent to the Court of Appeals. such appeal the ground or reasons therefor;, court, to which the writ may be sent, shall, and thereupon it shall be the duty of the said commissioner to make out, under his hand and the seal of his office, and transmit to the Court of Appeals, a transcript of the record of proceedings in such case, within sixty days from the time of the appeal taken, but in such transcript no paper or proceedings, not necessary to the determination of the appeal, shall be incorporated. RELATING TO APPEALS GENERALLY. 17. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 39.) Upon any appeal being taken in a court of law or equity, or application to take up the record as upon writ of error allowed, the clerk of such court shall make out, and transmit to the Court of Appeals, a transcript of the record of proceedings, under the seal of his office, in accordance with the foregoing rules, and within the time therein prescribed, and upon the receipt of such transcript, the clerk of the Court of Appeals shall enter the case upon his docket as of the term next after the receipt of such transcript, unless required to be placed upon the docket of the term during which it is received by the rules of this court or some statute. 18. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 40.) No appeal shall be dismissed because the transcript shall not have been transmitted within the time prescribed, if it shall appear to the Court of Appeals that such delay was occasioned by the neglect, omission or inability of the clerk or appellee; but such neglect, omission or inability shall not be presumed, but must be shown by the appellant. 19. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 42.) In all cases of cross-appeals, or of more than one appeal being entered in the same case from any judgment, decree or order, there shall be but one transcript of the record transmitted to the Court of Appeals, and that shall be used upon the hearing of all such appeals. In cases arising under this rule, the appellate court shall have power to award costs, including the cost of transmitting the record, to either of the parties in its discretion, or the costs may be apportioned as the said court may deem just. 20. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 43.) Whenever a case has before been in the Court of Appeals, there shall be copied into the transcript, upon any subsequent appeal, only the proceedings occurring in the Court below subsequent to the former appeal. 21. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 48.) In all cases where a writ of diminution shall be issued, the clerk of the inferior 22. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 68.) The appeal allowed by section 374 of article 23 of the Code of Public General Laws, shall be taken within thirty days from the date of the judgment or determination of the court appealed from; and the transcript of the record shall be transmitted to this court within 30 days from the day of the appeal entered. 23. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 69.) The appellant or appellants, if the defendant or defendants in the cause, upon praying such appeal, in order to stay the execution or enforcement of the judgment appealed from, shall tender and file in the cause an appeal bond, in such form and with such sureties, as may be approved by the court, the penalty in such bond not to exceed, in any case, the sum of ten thousand dollars. 24. (Code, Article 5, Sec. 49.) Before the All appeals shall be brought into this court by transcripts of the records of the courts below, as contemplated by the Constitution, and shall be made up as directed by the rules of this court and by statute. clerk shall be required to have any transcript in any civil case printed, the appellant or appellants shall, upon being informed of the amount of the cost, pay or secure to be paid to the clerk the amount of such cost, so that the clerk shall not be required to pay out money for printing and incur the risk of loss in not being able to collect the cost from the parties from whom it may be due, after the work is done. And if there be crossappeals, or more than one appeal, embraced in one transcript, the cost shall be duly apportioned; and no appeal shall be considered as ready for hearing until this rule shall be complied with by the appellant or appellants. But nothing herein contained shall be taken to prevent the appellee from having the appeal dismissed, or the judgment, order or decree affirmed, under rule of court, for failure on the part of the appellant to have the appeal ready for argument. APPEALS IN CRIMINAL CASES. 25. Section 1. In criminal cases an appeal or writ of error allowed by law shall be taken within thirty days from the date of judgment or sentence, and a transcript of the record shall be forthwith transmitted to this court, (111 A.) and the case shall be heard at the earliest, APPEALS FROM PRO FORMA ORDERS. convenient day after the record is transmitted to this court, either during the term at which the transcript is received or at the first term thereafter unless continued for cause. 26. This court will not entertain or consider any appeal taken from a pro forma order, decree or judgment, but will treat every such appeal as prematurely taken, and will disSec. 2. Criminal cases may on motion of miss the same whenever it appears on the the Attorney General or counsel for the ac-face of the record, or otherwise, that the apcused be advanced, so as to be disposed of peal is from such pro forma order, decree or without any unnecessary delay. judgment. Rules Specially Applicable to Practice in the Court of Appeals of Maryland, Adopted by said Court, in Effect March 1, 1920 DOCKETS. Section 1. In preparing the court docket for each term, the clerk shall place the cases on said docket in the order in which the transcripts of record are received by him, without regard to the judicial circuits from which they are received, unless otherwise ordered by the court. Sec. 2. Two weeks before the beginning of each term he shall have printed the court docket, consisting of all cases filed by that time which have not been heard, including those continued from the previous term and those ordered to be re-argued, which docket shall be sent to attorneys as the preliminary dockets have heretofore been sent; and all cases afterwards received, before the beginning of the next term, shall be added to said docket in the above order. Sec. 3. The clerk shall not place upon the court docket of either of the terms of this court any case unless the record therein shall have been actually filed in his office before the first day of such term; and all records filed on or after the first day of the term shall be placed on the docket of the next succeeding term; provided, however, that nothing in this rule contained shall apply to cases or appeals allowed under sections 31 and 42 of article 5 of the Code of 1911, or to any other cases or appeals where, by statute or the rules of this court, the appeal may be heard during the same term to which the record shall be transmitted. 28. Beginning the first Tuesday of each term, cases will be called for argument in their numerical order, as they appear on the court docket. No more than five cases will be called for argument on any one day, nor will any case be taken up out of its course in prejudice to the call of any subsequent case, unless en titled to a preference by law, or for sufficient cause appearing to the court; and all cases reached in the regular call of the docket must be finally disposed of unless continued or postponed for cause shown, or by consent of the parties. 29. Cross-appeals, and writs of error by both parties, will be called and heard at the same time, and will be regarded as one case in making assignments under rule 28. CONTINUANCE. 30. No cases will be continued for more than two terms without the mutual consent of the parties in open court, or their written order to that effect, and if any case be so continued, it must be argued or submitted during the third term after the transmission of the record, unless by leave of court it be continued to a subsequent term. Unless such leave be obtained, the case shall not be placed on subsequent court dockets without an order of the court, and upon the expiration of three terms of court after it is so dropped the appeal shall be dismissed, unless otherwise ordered by the court, before the expiration of the third term. COUNSEL, APPEARANCES, ETC. 31. Section 1. Upon the filing of the transcript of a record brought up by writ of error or appeal, the appearance of the counsel who appeared below shall be entered, excepting of such as have directed their appearance to be stricken out in the court below, as shown by the record, or have ordered the clerk of this court not to enter their appearance, and other appearances may be entered on the written order of counsel filed with the clerk of this court. Sec. 2. Where no counsel appears, and no brief has been filed for the appellant or plaintiff in error, when the case is called for |