Appellate Briefs Are Not the Place to Incorporate Material from Someplace Else by Reference
Buried in a footnote in the February 7 opinion in a criminal appeal is a helpful reminder for all advocates in the Seventh Circuit, including those handling civil appeals. In , Mr. Moody sought to incorporate an argument by reference from the appellate brief of a trial court co-defendant whose appeal had not been consolidated with his.
The court declined to consider the argument, in part because, in the absence of consolidated appeals, 鈥淢oody was not permitted to incorporate by reference his codefendant鈥檚 arguments.鈥 Slip op. at 2, n.1.
The court of appeals cited two of its prior decisions to emphasize this point: 鈥Albrechtsen v. Bd. Of Regents of Univ. of Wisconsin Sys., 309 F.3d 433, 435鈥36 (7th Cir. 2002) (鈥榌A]ppellate briefs may not incorporate other documents by reference.鈥)鈥 and 鈥Parker v. Franklin Cty. Cmty. Sch. Corp., 667 F.3d 910, 924 (7th Cir. 2012) (rejecting defendants鈥 attempt to incorporate by reference arguments in their prior district-court brief).鈥
Judge Amy Barrett wrote for the court. Chief Judge Diane Wood and Judge Kenneth Ripple joined her opinion.
