Appellate briefs, notices of appeal and record appendices, drafted to your court's rules
For people representing themselves and for law firms, in state and federal appellate courts across the United States. The software drafts the papers of the appeal; you review them, sign them and file them.
Legal Ops Depot is litigation software. Its engine drafts the papers of an appeal, the notice of appeal that starts it, the opening or answering brief, the reply brief and the record appendix, for the court on your caption and to that court's official rules, with every case citation checked on 4 points. You review them, sign them and file them yourself. Each item is one price per filing, paid once, from $99.
Appeal: briefs, notice of appeal, record appendix
- Opening or answering brief
- $899
- Reply brief
- $899
- Notice of appeal
- $599
- Appendix 1–50 pages
- $99
- Appendix 51–150 pages
- $149
- Appendix 151+ pages
- $199
One price per filing, paid once.
- Each item is one filing: a brief, the notice of appeal or the appendix
- Every case citation checked on 4 points
- 3 checkpoints: two stops for your review, then a final read
- The filing packet, formatted to your court's rules
- You review it, sign it and file it
Payment through Stripe. Not a law firm.
- About 10 million court decisions in the law library
- 77.5 million citation links between those decisions
- 3,400 courts matched to their official court rules, in 57 U.S. jurisdictions
- 15 phases 94 defined steps and 3 checkpoints behind every filing
Which appeal papers does the software draft?
Each is its own item on Pricing. You choose the paper; the software drafts the one you choose.
Notice of appeal
The notice that starts an appeal. It is filed in the trial court, not the appellate court, and its deadline is jurisdictional: no judge can forgive it.
Opening or answering brief
The appellant's opening brief (the initial brief in some states), or the appellee's brief in answer to it.
Reply brief
The appellant's reply to the appellee's brief.
Record appendix
The record appendix, priced by its page count: 1 to 50 pages, 51 to 150 pages, or 151 pages or more.
What do you get with an appeal item?
A finished packet you can take to the clerk, the same for every filing: what you receive on How it works.
The filing itself
The filing itself, formatted to your court's rules: caption, margins, fonts, spacing, and page or word limits.
Every companion document
Every companion document that court requires with it, such as a cover page, certificate of service, certificate of compliance and table of authorities.
Exhibits, indexed and numbered
Exhibits, indexed and numbered. A record appendix is ordered separately.
A citation ledger
A citation ledger: every case the filing relies on, where it came from, and why it fits your facts.
The deadline math
The deadline math, written out, with the rule each date comes from.
A print-ready PDF
A print-ready PDF, checked page by page.
How does the software build the brief?
The same engine builds every filing: 15 phases, 94 defined steps and 3 checkpoints. See every phase on How it works.
You order it on Pricing
Payment runs through Stripe. Your card details go straight to Stripe; this site never sees or stores them.
You add your case details
Your order is saved in your account, and you add your case details there: who is filing, the court if you know it, the signature-block lines and your documents.
The engine does the work
The record and every document you give it are read in full, deadlines are computed from the document and the rule text, and the research runs in the law library, the authority that binds your court first and the law against your argument searched as hard as the law for it. Then the paper is drafted to your court's rules, attacked, and every case citation is verified.
You review at 3 checkpoints
By default, the work stops twice for review, and the whole filing gets a final read before it ships. In order: Checkpoint 1 · The consult (after intake), Checkpoint 2 · Strategy sign-off (before drafting) and Checkpoint 3 · Final read (before filing).
You sign it and file it
The finished packet comes back to you. You sign it and file it with the clerk yourself. The software does not appear in your case, speak for you, or sign anything for you.
- It existsThe case is found in the source, not recalled from memory.
- The quote is word for wordAny quoted language matches the opinion exactly.
- It says what the filing saysThe point it is cited for is actually in the opinion.
- No later decision found overrules itThe research looks for later decisions that cite it.
Only overruled U.S. Supreme Court decisions are flagged automatically, so read the limits.
How much does appeal work cost?
One price per filing, paid once. The price shown here is read from the same catalog as Pricing.
Appeal: briefs, notice of appeal, record appendix
- Opening or answering brief
- $899
- The appellant's opening brief (the initial brief in some states), or the appellee's brief in answer to it.
- Reply brief
- $899
- The appellant's reply to the appellee's brief.
- Notice of appeal
- $599
- The notice that starts an appeal.
- Appendix 1–50 pages
- $99
- Record appendix, 1 to 50 pages.
- Appendix 51–150 pages
- $149
- Record appendix, 51 to 150 pages.
- Appendix 151+ pages
- $199
- Record appendix, 151 pages or more.
One price per filing, paid once.
- Each item is one filing: a brief, the notice of appeal or the appendix
- Every case citation checked on 4 points
- 3 checkpoints: two stops for your review, then a final read
- The filing packet, formatted to your court's rules
- You review it, sign it and file it
Payment through Stripe. Not a law firm.
Filings priced separately
Each item is one filing: a brief, the notice of appeal or the appendix. Complaints, petitions and motions are separate items. The court's own filing fee is not included; you pay it to the clerk. See every price.
Not sure which item fits?
For a filing not listed or a firm’s volume, request a quote and get a price before you pay anything. Rush: flat rate, or quoted pricing available for large filings.
Questions about appeals
How long do I have to file a notice of appeal?
Find your own rule and trigger date first: states differ. In an ordinary federal civil case it is 30 days from entry of the judgment (Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A)); a criminal defendant has 14 days (Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(1)(A)). The deadline is jurisdictional: no judge can forgive it. The software computes deadlines from the document and the rule text and writes out the math; filing on time stays your responsibility.
When is the brief due?
The brief's deadline runs from an event in the appellate court, usually the filing of the record, not from the judgment. Federally, Fed. R. App. P. 31(a)(1) gives an appellant 40 days after the record is filed and an appellee 30 days after the appellant's brief is served. Circuit local rules often change the trigger, so read them.
Which brief item do I need?
The appellant files the opening brief (the initial brief in some states) and may file a reply; the appellee files the answering brief. The Opening or answering brief item covers either of the first two, and the Reply brief item covers the reply. Each is one price per filing, paid once.
How is the record appendix priced?
By its page count, in three bands: 1 to 50 pages, 51 to 150 pages, and 151 pages or more. The price of each band is on Pricing.
Is Legal Ops Depot a law firm? Will it tell me how my appeal will turn out?
No. Legal Ops Depot is AI litigation software, not a law firm. Nothing here is legal advice, and no result is promised. The software drafts at your direction; you review each paper, sign it and file it yourself.
How are the case citations checked?
Every case citation is checked against the full court opinion on 4 points: the case exists, any quote is word for word, the case says what the brief says it says, and no later decision the research finds overrules it. A citation that fails any point is removed.
Why is every case citation checked?
Because AI tools can invent cases. A public database of court decisions that found a party relied on AI-invented material, mostly fake citations, listed 2,225 cases as of October 27, 2026 (AI Hallucination Cases, by Damien Charlotin). Some courts now require anyone who used generative AI on a filing, including people representing themselves, to say so and to certify that every citation was verified; the circuit courts for Miami-Dade and Broward counties in Florida did so in orders of May 20, 2026 (Florida Bar News, May 21, 2026). The software checks each case citation in the brief on 4 points and removes any that fails. Following your court's rules on AI use is still your responsibility.
Why not use the free court form?
You can, and if a free form fits your case, use it. Many courts publish free fill-in forms for people representing themselves. A form gives you the blanks to fill in. It does not research the law, find and check the case citations, or write the brief to your court's rules. That is the work the software does.
Guides on appeals
- GuideHow do I write an appellate brief?The steps of an appeal, the parts of a brief, its length limits and the mistakes that sink one.
- GuideWhat happens if I missed a court deadline?What the federal rules say about a missed deadline, a late filing and a late notice of appeal.
- GuideHow do I petition the U.S. Supreme Court?Cert petitions, extraordinary writs, the deadline and the format.
- GuideWhat are local rules of court, and where do I find them?The extra rules each court writes for itself, plus the judge's own orders, and how to find both.
Is the direct appeal over? A challenge to a conviction after the appeal is a petition.
See petitionsLegal Ops Depot is AI litigation software, not a law firm, and nothing on this page is legal advice. The software drafts at your direction; you decide what to file, and you remain the filer. No result is promised. Disclosures