Rule 84.04.Briefs -- Contents.

Rule 84.04 is the blueprint for an appellant’s brief. It must contain, in order, a detailed table of contents and table of authorities; a jurisdictional statement; a statement of facts; the points relied on; an argument that substantially follows the order of those points; and a short conclusion stating the precise relief sought. The jurisdictional statement has to do real work — a bare recital that the case “involves the validity of a statute” or similar boilerplate isn’t enough. It must lay out the facts that connect the case to the specific constitutional provision invoked, and the rule offers a model example built around a sales-tax exemption question to show what that looks like in practice.

The statement of facts has to be fair, concise, and free of argument, and every factual assertion needs a specific page reference to the record — the legal file, transcript, or exhibits, including the system-generated document and page number, plus an appendix page reference if the material also appears there.

The points relied on are where most of the rule’s detail lives. Each point must identify the specific ruling or action being challenged, state concisely the legal reasons the appellant claims it was reversible error, and explain — in the context of the case — why those reasons support that claim. That same three-part structure applies whether the appeal reviews a trial court or an administrative agency. An original writ proceeding adds a fourth element: the point must first state what relief the petitioner or relator seeks from the appellate court, then identify the challenged action, then state the legal reasons for the challenge, then explain why those reasons support it. Abstract statements of law standing alone don’t satisfy the rule, and any reference to the record has to stay limited to the ultimate facts the court needs, not a recitation of the evidence. Immediately after each point, the appellant, relator, or petitioner must list no more than four supporting cases along with the constitutional, statutory, or regulatory provisions relied on, and the rule supplies template language — “The trial court erred in … because … in that …” — for how the point itself should read.

The argument section has to track the order of the points, restate each point at the start of the section addressing it, and stay within the errors the points raise. For every claim of error, the argument must also address whether and how the error was preserved for review and what standard of review applies. A challenged jury instruction must be set out in full where it’s discussed. The respondent’s brief follows the same structural rules, must respond point by point, and may add independent arguments supporting the judgment beyond what the appellant’s points require. A reply brief cannot reargue what the opening brief already covered. Every brief must come with a separately paginated, separately filed appendix containing the judgment or order with findings and conclusions, the full text of controlling statutes, rules, or ordinances, and the full text of any instruction a point relates to. Cross appeals follow a modified sequence of briefs but otherwise comply with this rule and Rule 84.06.