A petition for review is a request for the Idaho Supreme Court to take up an appeal after the Idaho Court of Appeals has issued an appellate decision in a case. [lvii] A petition for review must be filed with the Idaho Supreme Court within 21 days of the issuance of the Idaho Court of Appeals opinion, order denying a petition for rehearing, or modification of the Idaho Court of Appeals’ opinion without granting rehearing (whichever is later). [lviii] A party is expressly permitted under the appellate rules to file a petition for review after or at the same time as a petition for rehearing with the Idaho Court of Appeals. But if both petitions are filed at the same time, the Idaho Supreme Court will not take any action on the petition for review until after the petition for rehearing has been decided. [lix]
The Rule governing petitions for review also lays out the general criteria that the Idaho Supreme Court considers when deciding whether to grant review. [lx] This includes: (1) whether the Court of Appeals decided an issue of law that has not previously been addressed by the Idaho Supreme Court; (2) whether the opinion from the Court of Appeals includes legal analysis that conflicts with prior decisions of the Idaho Supreme Court or the United States Supreme Court; (3) whether the Court of Appeals opinion conflicts with its own prior case law; (4) whether the opinion sanctions trial court procedures or is so inconsistent with acceptable judicial proceedings that it calls for the Idaho Supreme Court to exercise its supervisory powers over Idaho courts; and (5) whether the case involves issues where granting review is in the public interest or the interest of justice. [lxi]
The party seeking review must file a brief in support of this request within 14 days of filing the petition, and this brief must address the criteria for granting review. [lxii] The opposing party is not permitted to file a response unless the Idaho Supreme Court grants them permission to do so. [lxiii] If review is granted, the case proceeds on the briefing that was submitted previously to the Idaho Court of Appeals unless the Idaho Supreme Court orders otherwise. [lxiv]