Louisiana Notice of Appeal
Louisiana has no party-filed notice of appeal at all: you ask the trial judge to sign an order of appeal, and the clerk, not you, mails notice to the other parties.
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Introduction
Louisiana runs two different appeal clocks, and neither one starts on the day the judgment is entered. A devolutive appeal, which does not stop enforcement of the judgment, must be taken within 60 days of either the expiration of the delay for applying for a new trial or judgment notwithstanding the verdict, if no timely application was filed, or the date the clerk mails notice that a timely new trial or JNOV motion was refused (La. Code Civ. Proc. art. 2087(A)). A suspensive appeal, which does stop enforcement once perfected, must be taken, and security furnished, within only 30 days of those same two triggers (art. 2123(A)). A timely new trial or JNOV motion is not an extension bolted onto the deadline; it is built into the trigger itself, restarting the clock from the mailing of notice that the motion was denied (arts. 2087(A)(2), 2123(A)(2)). Neither article 2087 nor article 2123 contains a general provision for extending these deadlines, so do not count on more time. Those articles do provide for interruption, not extension: removal of the case to federal court interrupts both delays, which start anew on remand (arts. 2087(E), 2123(D)), and the 30-day suspensive delay is interrupted while the trial court fixes an unusually large security amount on a judgment over $150 million, or while a supervisory writ on that security amount is pending (art. 2124(B)-(C)). Unlike most states, Louisiana has no party-filed document called a notice of appeal. You take an appeal by asking the trial court, through oral motion in open court, written motion, or petition, to sign an order of appeal (art. 2121). Once the court grants that order, the clerk of court, not the appellant, mails notice of the appeal to the other parties and to the appellate court. Civil appeals from district, city, and parish courts go to the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the circuit where the trial court sits, one of five circuits (art. 5001). No statewide official appeal form exists. A devolutive appeal needs no security; a suspensive appeal from a money judgment requires security equal to the judgment amount plus the interest allowed by the judgment to the date it is furnished, exclusive of costs, and filing alone never stops collection of the judgment, only a perfected suspensive appeal or another stay does. A judgment from a city or parish court follows a separate, much shorter 10-day deadline, covered below. A small claims division judgment generally cannot be appealed: a plaintiff who files there waives appeal unless the complaint is removed or is transferred under R.S. 13:5206, and a defendant waives appeal unless they move to remove the case to the regular civil docket within the time allowed to answer the complaint. Criminal, administrative agency, federal court, and interlocutory appeals follow different rules and are not covered here. Attorney review is available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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A devolutive appeal (does not stop enforcement) is due within 60 days, and a suspensive appeal (stops enforcement once perfected) is due within only 30 days, both measured from the expiration of the delay for applying for a new trial or JNOV, if no timely application was filed, or from the clerk's mailing of notice that a timely new trial or JNOV motion was refused (La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 2087(A), 2123(A)). A timely new trial or JNOV motion restarts this clock from the mailing of the denial notice; it is part of the trigger, not a separate extension (arts. 2087(A)(2), 2123(A)(2)).
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Neither article 2087 nor article 2123 provides a general extension of either deadline. They provide only interruptions, not extensions: removal to federal court interrupts both delays, which start anew on remand (arts. 2087(E), 2123(D)), and the 30-day suspensive delay is interrupted while the trial court fixes security on a judgment over $150 million, or while a supervisory writ on that security is pending (art. 2124(B)-(C)).
- 3
There is no party-filed notice of appeal in Louisiana. You take an appeal by oral motion in open court, written motion, or petition asking the trial court to sign an order of appeal (art. 2121). Once granted, the clerk of court, not the appellant, mails notice of the appeal to the other parties and to the appellate court.
- 4
The order of appeal must show the return day of the appeal in the appellate court, and must state the amount of security when the law requires the court to fix it, as for a suspensive appeal (art. 2121). Louisiana has no statewide official form for the motion or the order; the motion is an ordinary pleading drafted to article 2121's requirements.
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A devolutive appeal needs no security at all (art. 2124(A)). A suspensive appeal from a money judgment requires security equal to the judgment amount, including the interest allowed by the judgment to the date security is furnished, exclusive of costs, which the trial judge may for good cause fix at up to 150 percent of that amount (art. 2124(B)(1), (D)). A person unable to pay because of poverty may prosecute or defend the appeal without paying costs in advance, under article 5181(A).
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Filing the motion for appeal does not by itself stop collection of the judgment. A devolutive appeal, by definition, does not suspend enforcement (art. 2087(A)); only a suspensive appeal, perfected by timely furnishing the article 2124 security within the 30-day delay, stays execution (art. 2088(A)).
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A city or parish court civil judgment follows a separate 10-day deadline from the date of judgment, or from service of notice of judgment when such notice is necessary, restarting after denial of a timely new trial motion (art. 5002(A)-(B)). A small claims division judgment generally cannot be appealed: a plaintiff who files there waives appeal unless the complaint is removed or transferred under R.S. 13:5206, and a defendant waives appeal unless, within the time allowed to answer the complaint, they file a written motion to remove the case to the regular civil docket (La. R.S. 13:5209(A)-(B)).
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Notice of Appeal in Louisiana, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Notice of Appeal guide walks through them.
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Louisiana Requirements for Notice of Appeal
Dual Track: 60-Day Devolutive, 30-Day Suspensive
A devolutive appeal, which does not stop enforcement, is due within 60 days; a suspensive appeal, which stops enforcement once perfected, is due, with security furnished, within only 30 days. Both run from the same two triggers (La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 2087(A), 2123(A)).
Trigger Is the New Trial Delay, Not Entry of Judgment
Both deadlines run from expiration of the delay for applying for a new trial or JNOV, if no timely application was filed, or from the clerk's mailing of notice that a timely such motion was refused, not from the date the judgment was signed or entered (arts. 2087(A), 2123(A)).
Timely New Trial Motion Restarts the Clock
A timely motion for new trial or JNOV is built into the deadline trigger itself: it restarts the devolutive or suspensive clock from the mailing of notice that the motion was denied, rather than extending a clock that has already started (arts. 2087(A)(2), 2123(A)(2)).
No General Extension of Either Deadline
Neither article 2087 nor article 2123 lets a court extend these deadlines. They provide only interruptions: removal to federal court interrupts both delays (arts. 2087(E), 2123(D)), and the 30-day suspensive delay is interrupted while the trial court fixes security on a judgment over $150 million, or while a related supervisory writ is pending (art. 2124(B)-(C)).
No Party-Filed Notice of Appeal
Louisiana has no self-executing notice of appeal document. An appeal is taken by oral motion in open court, written motion, or petition asking the trial court to sign an order of appeal (art. 2121).
Clerk, Not Appellant, Mails the Notice
Once the trial court grants the order of appeal, the clerk of court, not the appellant, mails notice of the appeal to counsel of record for all other parties, to the appellate court, and to unrepresented parties (art. 2121).
Return Day and Security Stated in the Order
The order of appeal must show the return day of the appeal in the appellate court, and must state the amount of security to be furnished when the law requires the court to fix it, as for a suspensive appeal (art. 2121). Louisiana has no statewide official form.
Security Required Only for a Suspensive Appeal
A devolutive appeal needs no security (art. 2124(A)). A suspensive appeal from a money judgment requires security equal to the judgment amount, including interest allowed by the judgment to the date it is furnished, exclusive of costs, which the trial judge may for good cause fix at up to 150 percent of that amount (art. 2124(B)(1), (D)).
Small Claims Division Judgments Generally Not Appealable
A plaintiff who files in a small claims division waives appeal unless the complaint is removed or transferred under R.S. 13:5206. A defendant waives appeal unless, within the time allowed to answer the complaint, they move to remove the case to the regular civil docket (La. R.S. 13:5209(A)-(B)).