The 30-Day Clock: Certiorari Deadlines and How Rehearing Petitions Affect Them

Every Utah certiorari practitioner needs to internalize one fact before anything else: the deadline is jurisdictional, the clerk will reject a late filing without exception, and there is no equivalent to the tolling motions that extend deadlines in trial court practice. URAP Rule 48(b) states it plainly: “The clerk will reject any petition for a writ of certiorari not timely filed.” This post covers exactly how the clock works, what affects it, and what options exist if more time is genuinely needed.

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The Baseline Rule: 30 Days From the Decision, Not the Remittitur

Under URAP Rule 48(a), a petition for writ of certiorari must be filed with the Supreme Court clerk within 30 days after the Court of Appeals’ final decision is issued — not from the date the remittitur is issued.

That distinction trips up litigants who are used to thinking about remittitur as the operative event that closes out a case. In Utah certiorari practice, it is not. The decision date — when the opinion, memorandum decision, or per curiam decision is issued — starts the clock. Waiting for the remittitur to issue before calculating your deadline will cause you to miscalculate it, potentially fatally.

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How a Petition for Rehearing Affects the Clock

This is where the interaction between two different procedural mechanisms becomes critical. If a party timely files a petition for rehearing under URAP Rule 35(a) — due within 14 days of the Court of Appeals’ decision — the certiorari clock does not run from the original decision date. Instead, under Rule 48(c), the 30-day period for filing the certiorari petition runs from the date the rehearing petition is denied, or from any subsequent decision issued on rehearing — and this applies to all parties to the case, not just the party who filed the rehearing petition.

This creates an important strategic dynamic: if you are unsure whether to seek rehearing or go straight to a certiorari petition, and a co-party or opposing party files a timely rehearing petition, your own certiorari clock is automatically extended along with theirs. Conversely, an informal request for clarification under Rule 35(b) — used to correct a nonsubstantive or clerical error — generally does not affect the certiorari deadline, unless the Court of Appeals construes the request as an actual rehearing petition.

For the full comparison of when to file each, see Petition for Rehearing vs. Petition for Certiorari: Two Different Tools.

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Extensions of Time: Two Different Mechanisms

Utah’s certiorari rule provides two distinct paths for additional time, with meaningfully different standards.

Before the deadline expires. Under amended Rule 48(e)(1), if a party requests an extension before the original 30-day (or rehearing-extended) deadline runs out, the Supreme Court will grant the request, up to 30 additional days past the originally prescribed time. This is, in practice, close to an extension as of right — filed in time, it is generally granted.

After the deadline expires. Under Rule 48(e)(2), a party may still file a motion to extend within 30 days after the original deadline has passed — but this motion will only be granted “upon a showing of good cause or excusable neglect.” This is a materially higher bar, and far less certain. Waiting until after the deadline has already passed to ask for more time converts what would have been a routine request into one requiring an affirmative showing the Court may or may not accept.

The lesson is straightforward: if more time is genuinely needed, ask before the deadline runs, not after.

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Cross-Petitions: A Separate Timing Track

If a party did not file the original petition but wants to raise its own issues for certiorari review — typically because it won on some issues below and lost on others — it may file a cross-petition under URAP Rule 48(d). The cross-petition is timely if filed either within the standard deadline under Rule 48(a) or (c), or within 30 days after the original petition was filed, whichever is later.

There is an important limitation: a cross-petition that is timely only under the 30-day-after-original-petition window will not be granted unless the original petition itself is also granted. A cross-petition cannot be joined with any other filing — the clerk will reject any filing that attempts to combine it with something else.

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Filing Fees and Practical Mechanics

Under Rule 48(a)(3), the filing fee must be paid to the appellate court clerk pursuant to URAP Rule 21, unless waived by the court. Most licensed attorneys are required to file through the appellate e-filing system, and if filing fees apply, payment must generally accompany or promptly follow the e-filed submission — confirm current procedural requirements with the Supreme Court clerk’s office, since these administrative mechanics are periodically updated.

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What Happens to the Remittitur While a Petition Is Pending

One practical wrinkle worth understanding: filing a certiorari petition automatically stays the Court of Appeals’ remittitur. This means the case does not formally return to the trial court for enforcement or further proceedings while the certiorari decision is pending. If certiorari is denied, the Court of Appeals’ remittitur issues in the ordinary course. If certiorari is granted, jurisdiction transfers to the Supreme Court entirely, and the Court of Appeals closes its file. Under URAP Rule 36, the Supreme Court’s own remittitur generally issues 15 days after its judgment — or 5 days after an order disposing of a timely rehearing petition, if one was filed.

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A Practical Calendar Checklist

For any Court of Appeals decision you are evaluating for certiorari:

1. Mark the decision date — the date the opinion, memorandum decision, or per curiam decision was issued. This is day zero.
2. Decide quickly whether to seek rehearing. If yes, that 14-day Rule 35 deadline is independently strict and must be calculated from the same decision date.
3. If no rehearing is sought, calendar day 30 as the certiorari filing deadline.
4. If rehearing is sought and denied, recalendar a new 30-day deadline from the date of the denial order — and remember this applies to all parties, not just the party who sought rehearing.
5. If more time may be needed, file the extension request before the deadline, not after — the standard is dramatically easier to satisfy proactively than retroactively.

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KEY RULE

URAP Rule 48 — Time for Petitioning

A petition for writ of certiorari must be filed within 30 days after the Court of Appeals’ final decision is issued — not the remittitur date — or this deadline is rejected without exception by the clerk. A timely Rule 35 rehearing petition resets this clock for all parties, running from the rehearing denial or subsequent decision. Extensions of up to 30 days are routinely granted if requested before the deadline expires; after the deadline, an extension requires a showing of good cause or excusable neglect — a materially higher bar.

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Acting Within the Window

Given that the clerk rejects late petitions without exception and there is no equivalent to a civil-procedure tolling motion, the single most important early decision in any potential certiorari case is calendaring the correct deadline immediately upon receiving the Court of Appeals’ decision. Lotus Appellate Law tracks every relevant deadline interaction — rehearing, certiorari, extensions, cross-petitions — for clients evaluating Utah Supreme Court review. Contact us as soon as an adverse Court of Appeals decision is issued.