Vermillion v. Corizon Health, Inc.

The appellees sought permission to file a brief containing more words than the 14,000 permitted by Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(7) and Circuit Rule 32(c). Vermillion, the appellant, represented that his brief contains fewer than 14,000 words, after excluding the portions not counted by Rule 32(f). Seventh Circuit staff found 16,522 countable words in Vermillion’s brief. The judge struck Vermillion’s brief, ordered him to file a new brief with fewer than 14,000 words, and directed him to explain why he should not be penalized for falsely representing that his original brief complied with the word limits. The court subsequently discharged the rule to show cause, upheld the order striking Vermillion’s brief, and reset the briefing dates, noting that Vermillion is litigating pro se. The court explained that Vermillion erred in his use of Microsoft Word because footnotes count toward the word limit. The fact that Rule 32 does not “specifically include” any category of words does not imply that it does not count toward the limit. Once Vermillion files a complying brief, the appellees will be subject to the 14,000-word limit; 14,000 suffices for all but the rare cases with lengthy trials, complex administrative records, or multiple complex issues. View "Vermillion v. Corizon Health, Inc." on Justia Law