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APPLICATION FOR CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE [DISTRICT NAME] DISTRICT OF [STATE]


[PETITIONER/MOVANT NAME],
Petitioner/Movant,	Civil Case No.: _________________
	(Related Criminal Case No.: _________)
v.
	APPLICATION FOR
[RESPONDENT NAME],	CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY
Respondent.

INTRODUCTION

Petitioner/Movant respectfully applies for a Certificate of Appealability ("COA") pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c) to appeal the District Court's denial of [his/her] [petition for writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 / motion to vacate, set aside, or correct sentence under 28 U.S.C. § 2255]. Petitioner/Movant demonstrates below that reasonable jurists could debate whether the petition/motion should have been resolved in a different manner, or that the issues presented are adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further.

PRELIMINARY INFORMATION

1. Type of Underlying Proceeding:

☐ Habeas Corpus Petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (state prisoner)
☐ Motion to Vacate under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (federal prisoner)
☐ Other: _____________________________________________________

2. Date of District Court Order Denying Relief:
_____________________________________________________________

3. Judge Who Issued the Order:
_____________________________________________________________

4. Did the District Court Issue a COA?

☐ No - District Court declined to issue COA
☐ No - District Court did not address COA
☐ Yes, but limited to certain issues (specify): _______________________
_____________________________________________________________

5. Notice of Appeal Filed:

☐ Yes - Date: _____________
☐ No - Will be filed with this application

PART I: LEGAL STANDARD FOR CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY

Statutory Requirement

Under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c), an appeal may not be taken to the court of appeals from:

"(A) the final order in a habeas corpus proceeding in which the detention complained of arises out of process issued by a State court; or

(B) the final order in a proceeding under section 2255"

unless a circuit justice or judge issues a certificate of appealability.

Standard for Issuance

Under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2), a certificate of appealability may issue "only if the applicant has made a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right."

The Supreme Court in Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473 (2000), clarified this standard:

For claims denied on the merits:

"Where a district court has rejected the constitutional claims on the merits, the showing required to satisfy § 2253(c) is straightforward: The petitioner must demonstrate that reasonable jurists would find the district court's assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong."

For claims denied on procedural grounds:

"When the district court denies a habeas petition on procedural grounds without reaching the prisoner's underlying constitutional claim, a COA should issue when the prisoner shows, at least, that jurists of reason would find it debatable whether the petition states a valid claim of the denial of a constitutional right and that jurists of reason would find it debatable whether the district court was correct in its procedural ruling."

Threshold Inquiry

The COA determination is a "threshold inquiry" that does not require full consideration of the factual or legal bases supporting the claims. Buck v. Davis, 580 U.S. 100 (2017).

"At the COA stage, the only question is whether the applicant has shown that 'jurists of reason could disagree with the district court's resolution of his constitutional claims or that jurists could conclude the issues presented are adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further.'"

PART II: CASE INFORMATION

6. Petitioner/Movant Information:

Field	Information
Full Name:
Current Location:
Prisoner/Register Number:

7. Underlying Conviction:

Field	Information
Court of Conviction:
Case Number:
Offense(s):
Date of Conviction:
Sentence:

8. Habeas/2255 Proceeding:

Field	Information
Date Petition/Motion Filed:
Civil Case Number:
Date of District Court Decision:

PART III: PROCEDURAL HISTORY

9. Summary of Proceedings Below:

10. Claims Raised in Habeas Petition/§ 2255 Motion:

Claim #	Description	District Court Ruling
1		☐ Denied on merits ☐ Denied on procedural grounds
2		☐ Denied on merits ☐ Denied on procedural grounds
3		☐ Denied on merits ☐ Denied on procedural grounds
4		☐ Denied on merits ☐ Denied on procedural grounds

11. District Court's Basis for Denial:

☐ Claims failed on the merits under AEDPA's deferential standard
☐ Claims were procedurally defaulted
☐ Petition/Motion was untimely under AEDPA's statute of limitations
☐ Petition was successive without authorization
☐ Failed to exhaust state remedies
☐ Other: _____________________________________________________

PART IV: ISSUES FOR WHICH COA IS REQUESTED

For each issue, Petitioner/Movant must demonstrate that reasonable jurists could debate the district court's resolution.

ISSUE ONE:

Statement of Issue:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

Constitutional Right at Stake:
_____________________________________________________________

How District Court Resolved This Issue:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

Why Reasonable Jurists Could Debate the District Court's Resolution:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

Relevant Legal Authority Supporting Debatability:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

ISSUE TWO:

Constitutional Right at Stake:
_____________________________________________________________

ISSUE THREE:

Constitutional Right at Stake:
_____________________________________________________________

ISSUE FOUR:

Constitutional Right at Stake:
_____________________________________________________________

(Attach additional pages for additional issues)

PART V: PROCEDURAL RULINGS (If Applicable)

If the district court denied relief on procedural grounds, address both prongs of the Slack standard:

12. Procedural Ground for Denial:

☐ Statute of limitations (AEDPA)
☐ Procedural default
☐ Exhaustion failure
☐ Successive petition bar
☐ Other: _____________________________________________________

13. First Prong - Debatability of Constitutional Claim:

Explain why jurists of reason would find it debatable whether the petition states a valid claim of the denial of a constitutional right:

14. Second Prong - Debatability of Procedural Ruling:

Explain why jurists of reason would find it debatable whether the district court was correct in its procedural ruling:

PART VI: ARGUMENT

15. Summary Argument for Issuance of COA:

_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

PART VII: REQUEST FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Petitioner/Movant respectfully requests that this Honorable Court:

☐ 1. Issue a Certificate of Appealability on all issues raised in this application;

☐ 2. In the alternative, issue a Certificate of Appealability on the following specific issues:
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________

☐ 3. Appoint counsel to represent Petitioner/Movant on appeal;

☐ 4. Grant leave to proceed in forma pauperis on appeal;

☐ 5. Grant such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.

PART VIII: VERIFICATION AND SIGNATURE

I, _________________________________, declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Executed on: ______________________ (Date)

At: _______________________________ (City, State)

_________________________________
Petitioner/Movant Signature

_________________________________
Printed Name

_________________________________
Prisoner/Register Number (if applicable)

Attorney Information (if represented):

_________________________________
Attorney Name

_________________________________
Bar Number

_________________________________
Address

_________________________________
Phone / Email

PART IX: CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on _________________ (date), I served a copy of this Application for Certificate of Appealability on:

For § 2254 Cases:

Respondent:
[Warden/Superintendent Name]
[Institution]
[Address]

Attorney General:
[Name]
[Address]

For § 2255 Cases:

United States Attorney:
[Name]
[Address]

By: ☐ U.S. Mail, first class, postage prepaid
☐ Electronic filing (CM/ECF)
☐ Hand delivery
☐ Other: ___________________

_________________________________
Signature

STATE-SPECIFIC NOTES

California (Ninth Circuit)

Ninth Circuit has specific procedures for COA applications
If district court denies COA, may apply directly to Ninth Circuit
Ninth Circuit form may be required (check current court forms)
Review Ninth Circuit case law on COA standards

Texas (Fifth Circuit)

Fifth Circuit has specific COA procedures
Application may be made to district court or directly to Fifth Circuit
Fifth Circuit has issued guidance on COA standards
Consider Fifth Circuit precedent on debatability

Florida (Eleventh Circuit)

Eleventh Circuit follows standard COA procedures
May apply to district court first, then Eleventh Circuit
Review Eleventh Circuit case law on threshold showing

New York (Second Circuit)

Second Circuit follows standard COA procedures
Second Circuit has specific precedent on COA standards
SDNY and EDNY have extensive habeas practice

PROCEDURAL NOTES

Who May Issue a COA

Under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c) and Fed. R. App. P. 22, a COA may be issued by:

A circuit justice
A circuit judge
A district judge

Procedure When District Court Denies COA

If the district court denies a COA, the applicant may:

File a notice of appeal
Apply directly to the court of appeals for a COA
The court of appeals will independently review the COA application

No COA Required for Government

A certificate of appealability is NOT required when a state or its representative, or the United States or its representative, appeals.

Partial COA

The court may grant a COA limited to specific issues. In such cases, the appeal is limited to those certified issues unless the court of appeals expands the COA.

KEY LEGAL AUTHORITIES

Authority	Principle
28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)	Statutory requirement for COA
Fed. R. App. P. 22	Procedural rules for habeas appeals
Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473 (2000)	Two-prong test for procedural denials
Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322 (2003)	COA is threshold, not merits inquiry
Buck v. Davis, 580 U.S. 100 (2017)	Low threshold; full consideration not required
Barefoot v. Estelle, 463 U.S. 880 (1983)	COA standard is not difficult to meet

TIMELINE FOR COA APPLICATION

Event	Deadline
District Court issues order denying habeas/2255	Day 0
Notice of Appeal	30 days (Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(B))
COA Application to District Court	With or before Notice of Appeal
COA Application to Court of Appeals	After district court denial
Court of Appeals decision on COA	Varies by circuit

COMMON REASONS FOR COA DENIAL

Reason	Response Strategy
Claims lack merit	Show reasonable debate exists
Frivolous arguments	Cite supporting authority
Conclusory allegations	Provide specific factual support
Procedural default	Address both prongs of Slack
AEDPA deference properly applied	Argue state court was unreasonable
No constitutional dimension	Frame issues in constitutional terms

ATTACHMENTS CHECKLIST

☐ Copy of District Court Order denying habeas/2255
☐ Copy of District Court Order denying COA (if separate)
☐ Notice of Appeal
☐ Original Habeas Petition or § 2255 Motion
☐ Relevant portions of state/federal court record
☐ Motion for Leave to Proceed In Forma Pauperis (if applicable)
☐ Motion for Appointment of Counsel (if applicable)
☐ Memorandum of Law (if desired)

IMPORTANT NOTES

Threshold Showing: The COA standard is a "threshold" inquiry - you do not need to show you will win on appeal, only that the issues deserve further proceedings.
Constitutional Claims Only: A COA is required only for constitutional claims. Statutory claims may be appealable without a COA in some circumstances.
Specificity Required: The COA must identify the specific issue(s) certified. General COAs are not favored.
Time Limits: File the notice of appeal timely (usually 30 days). The COA application should be filed promptly.
No Waiver: Denial of a COA does not waive any claims for future proceedings (subject to successive petition rules).

This template addresses applications for certificate of appealability under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c). Procedures may vary by circuit. Consult the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, local circuit rules, and current case law.

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APPLICATION FOR CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE [DISTRICT NAME] DISTRICT OF [STATE]

INTRODUCTION

PRELIMINARY INFORMATION

PART I: LEGAL STANDARD FOR CERTIFICATE OF APPEALABILITY

Statutory Requirement

Standard for Issuance

Threshold Inquiry

PART II: CASE INFORMATION

PART III: PROCEDURAL HISTORY

PART IV: ISSUES FOR WHICH COA IS REQUESTED

ISSUE ONE:

ISSUE TWO:

ISSUE THREE:

ISSUE FOUR:

PART V: PROCEDURAL RULINGS (If Applicable)

PART VI: ARGUMENT

PART VII: REQUEST FOR RELIEF

PART VIII: VERIFICATION AND SIGNATURE

PART IX: CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

STATE-SPECIFIC NOTES

California (Ninth Circuit)

Texas (Fifth Circuit)

Florida (Eleventh Circuit)

New York (Second Circuit)

PROCEDURAL NOTES

Who May Issue a COA

Procedure When District Court Denies COA

No COA Required for Government

Partial COA

KEY LEGAL AUTHORITIES

TIMELINE FOR COA APPLICATION

COMMON REASONS FOR COA DENIAL

ATTACHMENTS CHECKLIST

IMPORTANT NOTES

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