Joint Certification for Direct Appeal to Court of Appeals

General Information

Full information on the Appeals process

• A Joint Certification for Direct Appeal to Court of Appeals is a request to have an appeal heard directly by the Court of Appeals, bypassing the normal first step of an appeal before District Court. The Bankruptcy Court will rule on whether the request for a direct appeal should be granted, or whether the appeal will be heard instead by District Court.

• The Joint Certification event is used if all appellants and appellees are jointly filing the request. If not all parties have signed off, the Request for Certification event must be used.

• If the Direct Appeal is accepted by the Court of Appeals, a separate Authorized Direct Appeal fee will apply, in addition to the original Appeal Filing and Docketing fee. This does not apply to the United States (e.g. US Trustee). View current fees

Filing Requirements

• It is recommended that the Joint Certification be filed using Official Form B24.

• The Joint Certification must be signed by all appellants and appellees.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Log into CM/ECF

2. Select Bankruptcy > Appeal/Related Events

3. Enter case number (e.g., xx-xxxxx) and click Next

4. Select Joint Certification for Direct Appeal to Court of Appeals from the event list and click Next

5. External Users Only: Check box if jointly filing with another attorney. Click Next. If jointly filing, select additional attorneys. Click Next

6. Select the party filer.  If the party is not listed, click on Add/Create New Party

Note: The "Attorney/Party Association” screen may appear. If your party selection was correct, check the box to create an association.

7. Browse to select the Certification (pdf file).  Click Next

8. Check the box next to the Notice of Appeal or Cross Appeal to which your Certification relates and click Next

9. Enter additional text, if desired, and/or select prefix text and click Next

10. Verify the final docket text; if correct, click Next to submit your document(s).

Note: The Notice of Electronic Filing displays giving you the document number. Copies of this notice are immediately e-mailed to all participants who receive electronic notification in the case.

Curing Deficiencies

If the Certification is deficient, an amended Certification must be filed prior to the deficiency deadline using the instructions above, or the document may be stricken.