Commentary: Streamlined transfer procedure in Missouri appeals

The procedure for seeking transfer to the Supreme Court of Missouri after opinion by the Missouri Court of Appeals has been the same for many years. Rule 83.04 required a party seeking transfer first to file an application in the Missouri Court of Appeals under Rule 83.02. Only after that application was denied could a party then file an application for transfer in the Supreme Court.

This longstanding procedure has now changed. Effective January 1, 2025, the Supreme Court amended Rule 83.04 and Rule 83.05 as well as Civil Procedure Form 15 to streamline the transfer procedure.

Practitioners seeking transfer are encouraged to review Rule 83 fully before proceeding. This comment will address only the recent changes to the process.

Changes to Rule 83.04

The relevant changes to Rule 83.04 make it clear that a party is no longer required to seek transfer in the Missouri Court of Appeals. The amended portions of Rule 83.04 now read:

If an application for transfer under Rule 83.02 has been denied, the A case may be transferred by order of this Court on application of a party for any of the reasons specified in Rule 83.02 or for the reason that the opinion filed is contrary to a previous decision of an appellate court of this state. A party does not need to file an application for transfer pursuant to Rule 83.02 prior to filing an application for transfer with this Court.

Application for such transfer shall be filed in this Court within 15 days of the date on which transfer was denied by the court of appeals. the later of:

(1) 15 days of the date on which the court of appeals denied transfer or overruled any Rule 84.17 post-disposition motion; or

(2) 30 days of the date on which the court of appeals files its opinion, memorandum decision, written order, or order of dismissal.

The amendment removed the language in Rule 83.04 previously requiring a party first to file an application for transfer in the Missouri Court of Appeals, and (seemingly to remove any possibility of ambiguity) the rule now expressly states a party does not need to do so. And, because post disposition motions are not mandatory, the result is that a party may file an application for transfer after opinion directly in the Supreme Court of Missouri without first filing any post-opinion motions.

Changes to Rule 83.05 and Form 15

Along with changes to Rule 83.04, the Supreme Court revised Rule 83.05 and Form 15 (the required cover sheet for a transfer application filed in the Supreme Court). Where subdivision (f)(2) of Rule 83.04 used to refer to a motion for rehearing, it now refers to “[a]ny Rule 84.17 post disposition motion.” A similar revision was made to Form 15.

Moreover, the same subdivision now incorporates the requirement formerly residing in subdivision (f)(5) that an application under Rule 83.04 be accompanied by the notice from the Missouri Court of Appeals overruling or denying the post-disposition motion or application for transfer. And subdivision (f)(5) was struck in its entirety.

Finally, the former version of subdivision (g), which had required a party to attach copies of the parties’ briefs in some circumstances, was eliminated. And subdivision (h), requiring service of the application for transfer, was redesignated to be subdivision (g). The order also made minor, non-substantive changes to Rule 83.05 that will not be discussed here.

More Efficient Transfer Procedure

The net effect of these changes is to streamline applying for transfer under Rule 83.04 by removing the largely futile formality of first applying for transfer under Rule 83.02. This was perhaps due to a recognition that the Missouri Court of Appeals virtually never granted a party’s post-opinion application for transfer.

A panel of the appellate court will sometimes issue an opinion transferring an appeal to the Supreme Court due to the general interest or importance of an issue in the case under the authority of Rule 83.02. See P.D.E. v. Juv. Officer, No. WD84899, 2022 WL 17100535 (Mo. App. Nov. 22, 2022); P.D.E. v. Juv. Officer, 669 S.W.3d 129 (Mo. banc 2023).

Occasionally, an appeal will be transferred by a dissenting judge in the Missouri Court of Appeals who certifies that the opinion is contrary to a previous decision of a Missouri appellate court under Rule 83.03. See Bowers v. Bowers, 543 S.W.3d 608, 610 n.2 (Mo. banc 2018); Bowers v. Bowers, No. ED103176, 2017 WL 2822506 (Mo. App. June 30, 2017).

More commonly, the Missouri Court of Appeals will determine in its opinion that an appeal should be transferred because the issues raised by the parties fall within the exclusive appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. See Goodman v. Saline Cnty. Comm’n, No. WD86126, 2024 WL 1392392 (Mo. App. April 2, 2024). After transfer, sometimes the Supreme Court will disagree and retransfer the appeal. See Goodman v. Saline Cnty. Comm’n, 699 S.W.3d 437, 440 (Mo. banc 2024).

The most common method for an appeal to be transferred is through a post-opinion order of the Supreme Court under Rule 83.04. These recent rule changes should make that procedure more efficient.