MS · rules

Miss. R. App. P. 21

WRITS OF MANDAMUS AND PROHIBITION DIRECTED TO A JUDGE OR JUDGES AND OTHER EXTRAORDINARY WRITS

activein force · 1999-01-01 – presentact-effective-date

(a) Writs and Process, Supreme Court. The Supreme Court shall issue all writs and

process necessary for the exercise and enforcement of its appellate jurisdiction and may

enforce its mandates by fine and other appropriate sanctions.

(b) Writs and Process, Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals shall issue writs and

other process necessary for the exercise and enforcement of its jurisdiction, but a writ, order,

or other process in any appeal not transferred to the Court of Appeals by the Supreme Court

shall be of no effect.

Filing. Application for a writ of mandamus or of prohibition directed to a judge or judges

shall be made by filing a petition with the clerk of the Supreme Court with proof of service

on the judge or judges and on all parties to the action in the trial court.

A petition for writ of mandamus, writ of prohibition, or other extraordinary writ shall

not bear the name of the judge or judges, but shall be entitled, In re: , Petitioner. To

the extent that relief is requested of a particular judge, unless otherwise ordered, the judge

shall be represented pro forma by counsel for the party opposing the relief, who shall appear

in the name of the party and not that of the judge, except that where the petition relates to a

criminal case, the judge shall not be represented by the District Attorney's office but shall

either represent himself/herself or be represented by the office of the Attorney General and/or

private counsel retained by the judge. The petition shall contain a statement of the facts

necessary to an understanding of the issues presented by the application and why it was

denied by the trial court; a statement of the issues presented and of the relief sought; a

statement of the reasons why the writ should issue; and certified copies of any order or

opinion or parts of the record which may be essential to an understanding of the matters set

forth in the petition. Upon receipt of the prescribed docket fee, the clerk of the Supreme

Court shall docket the petition and submit it to the appellate court to which the case has been

assigned.

(d) Denial; Notice Directing Answer. If the appellate court is of the opinion that the

writ should not be granted, it will deny the petition without requesting an answer. Otherwise,

the clerk of the Supreme Court will issue notice that an answer to the petition be filed by the

respondents within the time fixed by the notice. The notice shall be served by the clerk on

the judge or judges and on all other parties to the action in the trial court. All parties below,

other than the petitioner, shall also be deemed respondents for all purposes. Two or more

respondents may answer jointly. The clerk shall advise the parties of the dates on which

briefs are to be filed, if briefs are required, and of the date of oral argument. The proceeding

shall be given preference over ordinary civil cases. The Supreme Court also may, in its

discretion, treat the petition as a petition for permission to appeal under Rule 5 and order

such further proceedings as the Court deems appropriate.

(e) Other Extraordinary Writs. Application for extraordinary writs other than those

provided for in subdivisions (c) and (d) of this rule shall be made by petition filed with the

clerk of the Supreme Court with proof of service on the parties named as respondents.

Proceedings on such application shall conform, so far as is practicable, to the procedure

prescribed in subdivisions (c) and (d) of this rule.

(f) Form of Papers; Number of Copies. All papers shall be typewritten or printed.

Four (4) copies shall be filed with the original, but the court may direct that additional copies

be furnished.

History

[Amended effective January 1, 1999] Comment: Rule 21 applies to all requests for remedial writs under Miss. Code Ann. § 9-1-19 (Supp. 1994). The rule was originally modeled on Fed. R. App. P. 21 as modified by 5th Cir. R. 21. With the exception of the writ of mandamus required by Rule 15, a party must seek relief in the trial court before obtaining the extraordinary relief of a remedial writ from the Supreme Court. The rule preserves the Mississippi requirement that papers attached to a petition must be certified. It does not require, however, that the petition be under oath. Petitions will be considered by a panel of the appropriate court rather than by a single justice or judge. In emergency circumstances in which panel consideration would be impractical due to requirements of time, however, a single justice or judge may hear the petition and issue a temporary stay pursuant to Rule 8. A single justice's or judge's decision not to grant a stay may be reviewed by the appropriate court. The Supreme Court, under Rule 21(b), retains the discretion to treat the petition as a petition for permission to appeal under Rule 5 and to instruct the parties to proceed under that rule. See In re Brown, 478 So. 2d 1033 (Miss. 1985) (application for writ treated as emergency appeal).

Provenance

Source: courts.ms.gov
Retrieved: 2026-09-25
Edition: 2026-09-25
Content hash: 73839390ddbe8981ab722b9019aefde9228adcb6b636f480f2b39ee54c30ba03

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