(a) The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has jurisdiction of appeals from --
(1) all final orders and judgments of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia;
(2) interlocutory orders of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia --
(A) granting, continuing, modifying, refusing, or dissolving or refusing to dissolve or modify injunctions;
(B) appointing receivers, guardians, or conservators or refusing to wind up receiverships, guardianships, or the administration of conservators or to take steps to accomplish the purpose thereof; or
(C) changing or affecting the possession of property; and
(3) orders or rulings of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia appealed by the United States or the District of Columbia pursuant to section 23-104 or 23-111(d)(2).
(b) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, a party aggrieved by an order or judgment specified in subsection (a) of this section, may appeal therefrom as of right to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
(c) Review of judgments of the Small Claims and Conciliation Branch of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and of judgments in the Criminal Division of that court where the penalty imposed is a fine of less than $50 for an offense punishable by imprisonment of one year or less, or by fine of not more than $1,000, or both, shall be by application for the allowance of an appeal, filed in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
(d) When a judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in making in a civil case (other than a case in which a child, as defined in section 16- 2301, is alleged to be delinquent, neglected, or in need of supervision) a ruling or order not otherwise appealable under this section, shall be of the opinion that the ruling or order involves a controlling question of law as to which there is substantial ground for a difference of opinion and that an immediate appeal from the ruling or order may materially advance the ultimate termination of the litigation or case, the judge shall so state in writing in the ruling or order. The District of Columbia Court of Appeals may thereupon, in its discretion, permit an appeal to be taken from that ruling or order, if application is made to it within ten days after the issuance or entry of the ruling or order. An application for an appeal under this subsection shall not stay proceedings in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia unless the judge of that court who made such ruling or order or the District of Columbia Court of Appeals or a judge thereof shall so order.
(e) On the hearing of any appeal in any case, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals shall give judgment after an examination of the record without regard to errors or defects which do not affect the substantial rights of the parties.
(f) The District of Columbia Court of Appeals shall hear an appeal from an order of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia holding an individual in contempt and imposing the sanction of imprisonment on such individual in the course of a case for custody of a minor child not later than 60 days after such individual requests that an appeal be taken from that order.
(g) Any appeal from an order of the Family Court of the District of Columbia terminating parental rights or granting or denying a petition to adopt shall receive expedited review by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
(July 29, 1970, 84 Stat. 480, Pub. L. 91-358, Title I, § 111; Sept. 23, 1989, 103 Stat. 634, Pub. L. 101-97, § 3; June 13, 1994, Pub. L. 103- 266, § 1(b)(7), 108 Stat. 713; Jan. 8, 2002, 115 Stat. 2112, Pub. L. 107- 114, § 4(b).)
HISTORICAL AND STATUTORY NOTES
Prior Codifications
1981 Ed., § 11-721.
1973 Ed., § 11-721.
Effect of Amendments
Pub. L. 107-114 added subsec. (g).
Effective Dates
Section 5 of Pub. L. 101-97 provided that the amendments made by §§ 2 and 3 shall apply with respect to any individual imprisoned before the expiration of the 18-month period that begins on the Dates of the enactment of this Act for disobedience of an order or for contempt committed in the presence of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia or the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has jurisdiction (1) except as provided in clause (2), to review orders and decisions of the Commissioner [Mayor] of the District of Columbia, the District of Columbia Council, any agency of the District of Columbia (including the Board of Zoning Adjustment of the District of Columbia and the Zoning Commission of the District of Columbia), and the District of Columbia Redevelopment Land Agency, in accordance with the District of Columbia Administrative Procedure Act (D.C. Official Code, secs. 2-501--2-510); and (2) to review orders and decisions of the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia in accordance with section 8 of the Act of March 4, 1913 (D.C. Official Chapters 1 through 11, Title 34).
(July 29, 1970, 84 Stat. 481, Pub. L. 91-358, title I, § 111.)
HISTORICAL AND STATUTORY NOTES
Prior Codifications
1981 Ed., § 11-722.
1973 Ed., § 11-722.
Change in Government
This section originated at a time when local government powers were delegated to the District of Columbia Council and to a Commissioner of the District of Columbia. The District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act, 87 Stat. 818, § 711 (D.C. Code, § 1-207.11), abolished the District of Columbia Council and the Office of Commissioner of the District of Columbia. These branches of government were replaced by the Council of the District of Columbia and the Office of Mayor of the District of Columbia, respectively. Accordingly, and also pursuant to § 714(a) of such Act (D.C. Code, § 1-207.14(a)), appropriate changes in terminology were made, in brackets, in this section.
(a) The District of Columbia Court of Appeals may answer questions of law certified to it by the Supreme Court of the United States, a Court of Appeals of the United States, or the highest appellate court of any State, if there are involved in any proceeding before any such certifying court questions of law of the District of Columbia which may be determinative of the cause pending in such certifying court and as to which it appears to the certifying court there is no controlling precedent in the decisions of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
(b) This section may be invoked by an order of any of the courts referred to in subsection (a) upon the court's motion or upon motion of any party to the cause.
(c) A certification order shall set forth (1) the question of law to be answered; and (2) a statement of all facts relevant to the questions certified and the nature of the controversy in which the questions arose.
(d) A certification order shall be prepared by the certifying court and forwarded to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. The District of Columbia Court of Appeals may require the original or copies of all or such portion of the record before the certifying court as are considered necessary to a determination of the questions certified to it.
(e) Fees and costs shall be the same as in appeals docketed before the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and shall be equally divided between the parties unless precluded by statute or by order of the certifying court.
(f) The District of Columbia Court of Appeals may prescribe the rules of procedure concerning the answering and certification of questions of law, under this section.
(g) The written opinion of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals stating the law governing any questions certified under subsection (a) shall be sent by the clerk to the certifying court and to the parties.
(h)(1) The District of Columbia Court of Appeals, on its own motion or the motion of any party, may order certification of questions of law to the highest court of any State under the conditions described in subsection (a).
(2) The procedures for certification from the District of Columbia to a State shall be those provided in the laws of that State.
(Oct. 28, 1986, 100 Stat. 3228, Pub. L. 99-573, § 7.)
HISTORICAL AND STATUTORY NOTESPrior Codifications 1981 Ed., § 11-723. Uniform Law This section is based upon §§ 1 to 9 of the Uniform Certification of Questions of Law Act (1967). See 12 Uniform Laws Annotated, Master Edition, or ULA Database on WESTLAW. LIMS JOBS PRIVACY POLICY DC COUNCIL ETHICS DC.GOV © 2013, The Council of the District of Columbia. All rights reserved |
