(a) Notice of Direct Appeal. A direct appeal to the Supreme Court authorized by law is perfected when a written notice of direct appeal is filed with the trial court clerk. The notice of direct appeal must be filed within the time provided by Rule 26.1 or as extended by Rule 26.3. The trial court clerk must immediately send a copy of the notice of direct appeal to the clerk of the Supreme Court. If a notice of direct appeal is mistakenly filed with the Supreme Court or the court of appeals, the notice is deemed filed the same day with the trial court clerk, and the Supreme Court clerk or the court of appeals’ clerk must immediately send the trial court clerk a copy of the notice.
(b) Contents of Notice. The notice of direct appeal must:
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(1) identify the trial court and state the case’s trial court number and style;
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(2) state the date of the judgment or order appealed from;
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(3) state that the party desires to take a direct appeal to the Supreme Court;
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(4) state the name of each party filing the notice;
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- (5) specify the law or laws under which the direct appeal is authorized;
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(6) in an accelerated appeal, state that the appeal is accelerated; and
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(7) state, if applicable, that the appellant is presumed indigent and may proceed without advance payment of costs as provided in Rule 20.1.
(c) Amending the Notice. An amended notice of direct appeal correcting a defect or omission in an earlier filed notice may be filed with the Supreme Court at any time before the appellant’s brief is filed. The amended notice is subject to being struck for cause on the motion of any party affected by the amended notice. After the appellant’s brief is filed, the notice may be amended only on leave of the Supreme Court and on such terms as the Supreme Court may prescribe.
(d) Other Requirements. Promptly upon filing the notice of direct appeal, appellant must file in the Supreme Court a docketing statement as provided in Rule 32.1 and pay all required fees authorized to be collected by the clerk of the Supreme Court.
(e) The Appellate Record. Rules 34 and 35 governing the appellate record apply to direct appeals to the Supreme Court.