Rule 3. Appeal as of Right – How Taken

(A) Filing the notice of appeal An appeal as of right shall be taken by filing a notice of appeal with the clerk of the trial court within the time allowed by Rule 4. Failure of an appellant to take any step other than the timely filing of a notice of appeal does not affect the validity of the appeal, but is ground only for such action as the court of appeals deems appropriate, which may include dismissal of the appeal. Appeals by leave of court shall be taken in the manner prescribed by Rule 5.

(B) Joint or consolidated appeals If two or more persons are entitled to appeal from a judgment or order of a trial court and their interests are such as to make joinder practicable, they may file a joint notice of appeal, or may join in appeal after filing separate timely notices of appeal, and they may thereafter proceed on appeal as a single appellant. Appeals may be consolidated by order of the court of appeals upon its own motion or upon motion of a party, or by stipulation of the parties to the several appeals.

(C) Cross appeal

(1) When notice of cross-appeal required Whether or not an appellee intends to defend an order on appeal, an appellee who seeks to change the order or, in the event the order is reversed or modified, an interlocutory ruling merged into the order, shall file a notice of cross appeal with the clerk of the trial court, and may also file a courtesy copy of the notice of cross- appeal with the clerk of the appellate court, within the time allowed by App.R. 4. The clerk of the trial court shall process the notice of cross-appeal in the same manner as the notice of appeal.

(2) When notice of cross appeal not required; cross-assignment of error never required A person who intends to defend an order appealed by an appellant on a ground other than that relied on by the trial court but who does not seek to change the order is not required to file a notice of cross-appeal or to raise a cross-assignment of error.

(D) Content of the notice of appeal The notice of appeal shall specify the party or parties taking the appeal; shall designate the judgment, order or part thereof appealed from; and shall name the court to which the appeal is taken. The title of the case shall be the same as in the trial court with the designation of the appellant added, as appropriate. Form 1 in the Appendix of Forms is a suggested form of a notice of appeal.

(E) Service of the notice of appeal The clerk of the trial court shall serve notice of the filing of a notice of appeal and, where required by local rule, a docketing statement, by mailing, or by facsimile transmission, a copy to counsel of record of each party other than the appellant, or, if a party is not represented by counsel, to the party at the party's last known address. The clerk shall mail or otherwise forward a copy of the notice of appeal and of the docket entries, together with a copy of all filings by appellant pursuant to App.R. 9(B), to the clerk of the court of appeals named in the notice. The clerk shall note on each copy served the date on which the notice of appeal was filed. Failure of the clerk to serve notice shall not affect the validity of the appeal. Service shall be sufficient notwithstanding the death of a party or a party's counsel. The clerk shall note in the docket the names of the parties served, the date served, and the means of service.

(F) Amendment of the notice of appeal

(1) When leave required A party may amend a notice of appeal without leave if the time to appeal from the order that was the subject of the initial notice of appeal has not yet lapsed under App.R. 4. Thereafter, the court of appeals within its discretion and upon such terms as are just may allow the amendment of a notice of appeal, so long as the amendment does not seek to appeal from a trial court order beyond the time requirements of App.R. 4.

(2) Where filed An amended notice of appeal shall be filed in both the trial court and the court of appeals.

(G) Docketing statement

(1) If a court of appeals has adopted an accelerated calendar by local rule pursuant to Rule 11.1, the appellant shall file a docketing statement with the Clerk of the trial court with the notice of appeal. (See Form 2, Appendix of Forms.) The purpose of the docketing statement is to determine whether an appeal will be assigned to the accelerated or the regular calendar. A case may be assigned to the accelerated calendar if any of the following apply:

(a) No transcript is required (e.g., summary judgment or judgment on the pleadings);

(b) The length of the transcript is such that its preparation time will not be a source of delay;

(c) An agreed statement is submitted in lieu of the record;

(d) The record was made in an administrative hearing and filed with the trial court;

(e) All parties to the appeal approve an assignment of the appeal to the accelerated calendar; or

(f) The case has been designated by local rule for the accelerated calendar. The court of appeals by local rule may assign a case to the accelerated calendar at any stage of the proceeding. The court of appeals may provide by local rule for an oral hearing before a full panel in order to assist it in determining whether the appeal should be assigned to the accelerated calendar. Upon motion of appellant or appellee for a procedural order pursuant to App.R. 15(B) filed within seven days after a case is placed upon the accelerated calendar, a case may be removed for good cause from the accelerated calendar and assigned to the regular calendar. Demonstration of a unique issue of law which will be of substantial precedential value in the determination of similar cases will ordinarily be good cause for transfer to the regular calendar

(2) If the appeal is expedited under App.R. 11.2, the appellant shall file a docketing statement with the clerk of the trial court with the notice of appeal indicating the category of case under App.R. 11.2 and the need for priority disposition.