Application must be made to the trial court for suspensive appeal by written motion, filed within 24 hours after the rendition of a judgment of eviction.1 Judgment is rendered when a written judgment is signed, not when the judgment is orally announced.2 As such, an appeal may be premature if it is filed before the written judgment.3
An appeal bond must also be filed within 24 hours of judgment, in an amount set by the trial court.4 As a practical matter, the appellant cannot pay a bond that has not yet been set. Sometimes it takes the judge longer than 24 hours to sign a motion for suspensive appeal and set the bond. Advocates should propose a bond amount in the motion for suspensive appeal and consider attempting to pay the proposed amount within 24 hours. In the alternative, if the court will not accept a bond before the order is signed, consider photocopying a money order for the proposed amount and filing that with the motion for suspensive appeal.5
Typically, after the order for suspensive appeal is signed and the bond paid, the trial court will prepare the record and the court reporter will prepare the transcript. If the client is indigent, presumably an in forma pauperis application was filed with the answer. The order to proceed in forma pauperis covers appeal costs.6 The court reporter may argue otherwise, but the transcript is covered by the in forma pauperis application along with all other costs of preparing the record.7
When the record is complete, the trial court sends it to the court of appeal. At that point, the parties will receive a “notice of lodging” with briefing deadlines for each side. Direct appeals of evictions can take 6–8 months to complete.
In most jurisdictions, weekends, legal holidays, and half-holidays are not included in the computation of time if the delay is less than 7 days.8 If an eviction judgment is rendered on a Friday or the day before a holiday, the deadline to vacate or file an appeal is the next business day.9
- 1La. C.C.P. art. 4735.
- 2See Viator v. Heintz, 10 So. 2d 690, 691 (La. 1942); Buras v. Plaquemines Par. Democratic Exec. Comm., 202 So. 2d 678, 679 (La. App. 4 Cir. 1967); Hous. Auth. of Lake Charles v. Minor, 355 So. 2d 270, 271 (La. App. 3 Cir. 1977).
- 3La. C.C.P. art. 1911. Wynne v. Parlay’s, Inc., 97-1170 (La. App. 4 Cir. 11/05/97); 701 So. 2d 1369 (an appeal granted before the signing of a final judgment is subject to dismissal until the final judgment is signed). But see Overmeir v. Traylor, 475 So. 2d 1094 (La. 1985) (signing of final judgment cures defect).
- 4La. C.C.P. art. 4735.
- 5For additional discussion of suspensive appeal bonds, see Section 7.1.3.
- 6See Dowden v. Miller, 404 So. 2d 1270, 1271 (La. App. 1 Cir. 1981) (“Thus once the trial court allowed plaintiff to proceed in forma pauperis and did not rescind the order, the second forma pauperis order was not necessary, and plaintiff could perfect a devolutive appeal ‘without paying the costs in advance, or as they accrue, or furnishing security therefor.’”).
- 7La. C.C.P. art. 5185(A)(1).
- 8La. C.C.P. art. 5059.
- 9Note that not all jurisdictions declare Saturday as a legal holiday.