Opinion ID: 1162719
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Pre-submittal conference

Text: No later than twenty (20) days prior to the scheduled pre-submittal conference, each party desiring to participate in the interlocutory appeal shall file a notice of appearance in the Supreme Court. The trial court shall not be deemed a party to the appeal, nor shall it participate in the appeal in any respect, even if the appeal is based on its certification. The Supreme Court may designate the parties as appropriate and, in the case of a certification, may align the parties in accord with their true interest in the questions presented. At the presubmittal conference, the Supreme Court shall make orders regarding further briefing and oral argument, if any. It shall also determine what portion of the record will be required to be transmitted, the date of transmittal, the parties to join in the presentation of issues, and other appropriate matters. J. Standard of review The standard of review to be applied to any interlocutory appeal under this rule shall be the same standard that would apply had the review been made following a final judgment in the adjudication proceeding. K. Costs and attorneys' fees Unless provided by statute, there shall be no application for costs or attorneys' fees made to the Supreme Court in connection with a petition for review by interlocutory appeal or with an interlocutory appeal granted under this rule. However, Rule 25, Ariz.R.Civ.App.P., 17B A.R.S., is fully applicable to pleadings filed pursuant to this order. All other issues of costs and attorneys' fees, if any, shall abide the final resolution of the adjudication. L. Other procedures 1. Except as otherwise provided herein, the Arizona Rules of Civil Appellate Procedure shall apply to proceedings under this order. Insofar as may be necessary, the provisions of Rule 5, Ariz.R.P.Spec.Act., 17B A.R.S., concerning stays, ex parte orders, restraining orders, and injunctions shall also apply. 2. This order is the exclusive remedy for the presentation of interlocutory issues to this court in this adjudication, including those issues that otherwise might be presented pursuant to the Rules of Procedure for Special Actions. M. Priority Insofar as possible, matters in this general adjudication shall be determined in preference to other civil matters. N. Filing date and extension of time periods All pleadings in any proceeding under this order shall be deemed filed on the day of mailing if deposited in a United States Post Office or mailbox, addressed to the Clerk of the Supreme Court, within the time allowed for filing. The Court, on its own motion, or by motion of a party with good cause shown, may grant extensions of any of the time limits set out in this order. COMMENTS Purpose. The purpose of this order is to establish a procedure for early review of all substantial questions in this general adjudication of water rights. Early appellate review may avoid wasteful trial court proceedings, may result in substantial savings of time or expense, or may for other reasons be in the interests of justice. The rule is not intended to be used for interlocutory appeal of individualized matters except where such an appeal might result in a ruling of general application that would advance the adjudication process. Need. Existing procedure allows interlocutory considerations of trial court rulings in certain limited circumstances. Thus, A.R.S. § 12-2101 describes the appellate jurisdiction of the Arizona Court of Appeals with respect to final judgments and certain interlocutory orders. Rule 54, Ariz.R.Civ.P., 16 A.R.S., provides a certification procedure for making certain judgments final that would not otherwise be appealable. The Rules of Procedure for Special Actions permit discretionary review of interlocutory decisions where the decision is arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion, or where the trial court may be proceeding without, or in excess of, jurisdiction. None of these procedures, however, provides for discretionary appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court other than in these limited circumstances. A general adjudication of water rights filed pursuant to A.R.S. § 45-251 et seq. is a lengthy proceeding that requires investment of vast public and private resources. There is a need to provide for discretionary appellate review of interlocutory decisions of the trial court in this proceeding to avoid the waste that might otherwise occur if significant interlocutory decisions were only reviewable after final judgment, which might not be entered for several years. Jurisdiction and authority. Article 6, § 5 of the Arizona Constitution provides that the Supreme Court shall have: 3. Appellate jurisdiction in all actions and proceedings except civil and criminal actions originating in courts not of record, unless the action involves the validity of a tax impost, assessment, toll, statute or municipal ordinance.       5. Power to make rules relative to all procedural matters in any court. Rule 19, Arizona Rules of Civil Appellate Procedure, 17B A.R.S., authorizes the Supreme Court to transfer appeals from the Appeals Court on its own motion. The adoption of this special procedural order will effectively transfer all interlocutory appeals under this order to the Supreme Court pursuant to Rule 19(f). Service. Subsection (D) of the order provides for service of the petition on parties to the adjudication in the same manner as other pleadings are served. In addition, filing the pleading of record in the superior court proceedings will cause the petition to be listed in the clerk's docket summary, which is mailed monthly to subscribers and which is available in the clerk's office for review by any party. Response/cross-petition. The response provides a party with the opportunity to support the petition or set forth the reasons why the petitions should not be granted. The response may also seek to narrow the scope of the interlocutory appeal if granted or to reformulate the matter for which interlocutory appeal is sought. The cross-petition may seek to have the court grant an interlocutory appeal of additional related questions if the petition or certification is granted. The cross-petition should make the same showing as required for the petition itself. Order denying petition. Unless stated to the contrary, an order denying a petition, cross-petition or certification is not intended to indicate that the Supreme Court approves of the trial court's ruling, but only that the Supreme Court has determined that there is an insufficient basis on which to grant review by interlocutory appeal. A subsequent petition, cross-petition or certification seeking interlocutory review or appeal of a ruling for which a previous petition has been denied may be entertained by the court, but only on a showing of a change of circumstances or additional grounds which could not, in the exercise of reasonable diligence, have been known at the time of the previous petition, cross-petition or certification. Stay. The granting of a petition for an interlocutory appeal shall not stay the proceedings in the superior court unless expressly so ordered by the Supreme Court. Dated this 26th day of September, 1989. /s/ Stanley G. Feldman STANLEY G. FELDMAN, VICE CHIEF JUSTICE