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Legal review · Scope & methodology

Federal Process Decision Trees

These trees classify a federal procedural problem; they do not predict an outcome. Each route ends at a canonical module, and the linked module and claim records control over the shorthand.

Whole-case router

Routing question Route Canonical module Stop condition
The criminal case has not reached final judgment Use the charging, pretrial, plea/trial, sentencing, or direct-review stage that matches the actual docket posture. Index Do not use post-conviction labels to bypass a pending criminal proceeding.
A verdict or finding is challenged before or around judgment Classify Rule 29, mistrial, verdict, juror, Rule 33, sentencing, and notice-of-appeal timing separately. Rule 29, Mistrial, Verdict, and Juror Misconduct Record verdict, filing, sentencing, judgment, and appeal dates.
The federal conviction or sentence itself is attacked while the movant is in custody Start with the initial § 2255 modules in the sentencing court. Initial Section 2255 Motion, Filing, and Limitations Check custody, limitations trigger, waiver/default, record, and requested remedy.
A later filing again attacks a federal judgment Classify the judgment, claim, ripeness, and prior disposition before calling it second or successive. Later Section 2255 Filings — Classification and Authorization Do not classify by paper count alone.
The challenge concerns present execution of a federal sentence Classify the challenged BOP action, respondent, district, remedy record, and § 2241 route. 28 U.S.C. § 2241 — Filing, Custodian, District, and Administrative Exhaustion Separate execution from judgment validity and conditions claims.
The requested relief is a statutory sentence modification Route among § 3582(c)(1)(A), § 3582(c)(2), § 3582(c)(1)(B), First Step Act § 404, and Rules 35/36. 18 U.S.C. § 3582 — Sentence-Modification Remedy Router Vehicle, gate, eligible change, remedy, and appeal rules are not interchangeable.
The issue is BOP computation, credits, designation, discipline, programming, or placement Use the sentence-execution modules and preserve the complete agency record. Index Distinguish eligibility, earning, application, discretion, and reviewability.
The issue arises during supervised release Separate commencement, conditions, modification, early termination, transfer, violation, revocation, and collateral challenge. Index Use the current condition text, supervision chronology, docket, and circuit law.
Custody has ended but a conviction consequence remains Classify coram nobis, executive clemency, and consequence-specific nonjudicial remedies separately. Extraordinary Writs — Coram Nobis, Audita Querela, and Mandamus No-custody status alone does not establish a writ or a consequence remedy.
A circuit-specific procedural or merits question remains Use the Supreme Court floor and the circuit with jurisdiction; stop at every not-verified row. Index Run a current citator and current local-rule check before filing.

Stage sequence

Federal process root
  -> investigation and charging
  -> pretrial
  -> plea or trial
  -> sentencing and judgment
  -> direct review and finality
  -> post-conviction, modification, or sentence execution
  -> supervised release and reentry
Every branch -> jurisdiction + deadline + record + remedy + circuit overlay checks

Structured remedy routes

Remedy control Issue Available relief Limits Claims
REMEDY-STA-DISMISSAL Speedy Trial Act charging or trial clock violation Dismissal of the complaint charge under § 3162(a)(1), or dismissal of the indictment or information on a timely defense motion under § 3162(a)(2). Dismissal may be with or without prejudice under statutory factors; trial-clock dismissal is waived if not sought before trial or plea. CLM-CHARGE-030, CLM-SPEEDY-004, CLM-SPEEDY-005, CLM-SPEEDY-007, CLM-SPEEDY-008
REMEDY-VENUE-RETRIAL reversal for constitutional venue or vicinage error A new trial in the proper venue is constitutionally permitted. Smith does not decide whether another independent bar prevents retrial. CLM-CHARGE-035
REMEDY-RULE-16-DISCOVERY-SANCTIONS failure to comply with Rule 16 An order compelling discovery on just terms, a continuance, exclusion of undisclosed evidence, or another just order. Rule 16(d)(2) makes sanction selection discretionary; appellate review and case-specific prejudice require controlling circuit law. CLM-DISC-012
REMEDY-JENCKS-RULE-26-2-NONPRODUCTION refusal to comply with a Jencks Act or Rule 26.2 production order Strike the witness's testimony; when the government disobeys, declare a mistrial if justice or the interests of justice require it under the controlling text. The statutory or rule trigger, statement definition, possession, relation to testimony, production order, and proceeding must be established. CLM-DISC-029, CLM-DISC-032
REMEDY-BRADY-NAPUE-GIGLIO material suppression or known false testimony violating due process A new trial, reversal, or relief limited to the affected punishment issue may be available when the constitutional and procedural-vehicle requirements are met. The correct vehicle, preservation, procedural default, timeliness, prejudice or reasonable-likelihood branch, scope of the affected judgment, and collateral-review restrictions control. CLM-DISC-016, CLM-DISC-020, CLM-DISC-023, CLM-DISC-025
REMEDY-SUPPRESSION-EXCLUSION evidence obtained through a proven constitutional violation or other exclusion ground Suppression or exclusion to the extent the governing source makes that remedy available. Exclusion is not automatic; personal-right, causation, good-faith, attenuation, impeachment, fruits, harmlessness, and other doctrine may limit relief. CLM-MOTION-008, CLM-MOTION-012, CLM-MOTION-014, CLM-MOTION-015
REMEDY-RULE14-PREJUDICIAL-JOINDER prejudice from joined offenses or defendants Separate trials of counts, severed defendant trials, limiting instructions, or other relief justice requires. Mutually antagonistic defenses do not compel severance; the asserted specific trial right, reliability risk, and adequacy of lesser measures control. CLM-MOTION-022, CLM-MOTION-023, CLM-MOTION-024
REMEDY-COMPETENCY-RESTORATION present incompetency to proceed Pause adjudication and use the bounded examination, hearing, treatment, restoration, recovery, or separate civil-commitment procedures authorized by statute. Competency does not establish insanity; restoration, medication, dangerousness, placement, and duration require current evidence and distinct findings. CLM-MENTAL-001, CLM-MENTAL-004, CLM-MENTAL-005, CLM-MENTAL-011
REMEDY-INSANITY-SPECIAL-VERDICT insanity established under 18 U.S.C. § 17 A special verdict of not guilty only by reason of insanity followed by § 4243 custody, hearing, and release-risk procedure. The defendant bears the § 17 trial burden and the postverdict § 4243 burden; competency and mental-condition mitigation are different issues. CLM-MENTAL-013, CLM-MENTAL-020, CLM-MENTAL-021, CLM-MENTAL-022
REMEDY-SIXTH-AMENDMENT-SPEEDY-DISMISSAL completed Sixth Amendment speedy-trial violation Dismissal of the affected charge. The constitutional violation first must be established through the complete Barker analysis; statutory Act dismissal has different preservation and prejudice-choice rules. CLM-SPEEDY-010, CLM-SPEEDY-014
REMEDY-PLEA-LOST-OFFER-IAC proven ineffective assistance causing a favorable formal offer to lapse or be rejected A remedy calibrated to neutralize the lost plea opportunity; reoffering may be the first step and court discretion remains bounded by the case. No right to an offer exists; deficiency, acceptance, prosecutorial action, judicial action, comparative outcome, and remedy must each be proved. CLM-PLEA-003, CLM-PLEA-004, CLM-PLEA-005, CLM-PLEA-006, CLM-PLEA-007
REMEDY-PLEA-GOVERNMENT-BREACH proven government breach of a promise inducing an entered guilty plea Case-appropriate withdrawal or specific-performance resentencing; the court selects the remedy under the governing law. Agreement construction, breach, preservation, plain error, prejudice, waiver, and remedy are distinct; no automatic defendant-selected remedy exists. CLM-PLEA-031, CLM-PLEA-032, CLM-PLEA-033, CLM-PLEA-034
REMEDY-PLEA-WITHDRAWAL request to withdraw a guilty or nolo plea Withdrawal before acceptance for any or no reason; after acceptance but before sentence on agreement rejection or a fair and just reason; after sentence only through direct or collateral review. The precise acceptance, agreement, rejection, sentencing, motion, and record dates control. CLM-PLEA-030, CLM-PLEA-042, CLM-PLEA-043, CLM-PLEA-044
REMEDY-RULE11-ERROR Rule 11 variance or judicial-participation violation Vacatur only when the applicable preserved- or unpreserved-error standard is satisfied on the record; formal nonconstitutional error alone does not establish § 2255 relief. Preservation, whole-record prejudice, constitutional character, jurisdiction, and the collateral standard must be classified separately. CLM-PLEA-046, CLM-PLEA-047, CLM-PLEA-048
REMEDY-GARZA-REQUESTED-APPEAL counsel disregarded an express instruction to appeal despite an appeal waiver Restoration of the lost appeal opportunity under the governing post-conviction procedure without a merits showing for the foregone appeal. The express instruction and lost proceeding must be proved; the waiver may still affect which appellate claims succeed. CLM-PLEA-039
REMEDY-JSSA-SUBSTANTIAL-FAILURE substantial failure to comply with the Jury Selection and Service Act Before voir dire, stay proceedings pending lawful jury selection; after voir dire, grant appropriate relief including dismissal of an indictment returned by an unlawfully selected grand jury or a new trial after an unlawfully selected petit jury. A timely motion, sworn statement and evidence, substantial failure, exact selection stage, and § 1867 remedy requirements must be established. CLM-TRIAL-008
REMEDY-RULE29-ACQUITTAL legally insufficient evidence of a charged offense Judgment of acquittal; a final insufficiency determination bars retrial on the affected offense. The elements, admitted evidence, procedural timing, and exact nature of the ruling must be established; trial error and a Rule 33 new-trial order are different. CLM-TRIAL-019, CLM-TRIAL-023, CLM-TRIAL-025, CLM-TRIAL-034
REMEDY-MISTRIAL-RETRIAL-CLASSIFICATION mistrial or partial jury deadlock Discharge and retrial when manifest necessity supports a court-declared mistrial; unresolved counts after a partial verdict may be retried under Rule 31. Consent, objection, alternatives, cause, record, prosecutorial intent, and any resolved counts control; a defendant-requested mistrial has the narrow Kennedy exception. CLM-TRIAL-027, CLM-TRIAL-028, CLM-TRIAL-029, CLM-TRIAL-030, CLM-TRIAL-031
REMEDY-RULE33-NEW-TRIAL interest of justice supports a new trial on a timely defendant motion Vacate the judgment and grant a new trial; after a nonjury trial the court may take additional testimony and enter a new judgment. Ground classification, timeliness, current Rule 45, pending appeal, controlling circuit merits, hearing, preservation, and appellate procedure remain distinct. CLM-R33-001, CLM-R33-002, CLM-R33-003, CLM-R33-005, CLM-R33-008, CLM-R33-009
REMEDY-SENTENCING-PROCEDURAL-CORRECTION material sentencing procedure, Guidelines, statutory-range, or explanation error Preservation and direct appellate correction, ordinarily vacatur and resentencing when reversible error is established. The precise error, preservation, prejudice or harmlessness, sentence package, appeal authorization, and controlling-circuit remedy law must be established; § 3553(a) is not a freestanding post-judgment vehicle. CLM-SENT-008, CLM-SENT-015, CLM-SENT-020, CLM-SENT-029, CLM-SENT-030, CLM-SENT-031, CLM-SENT-064
REMEDY-RESTITUTION-ORDER victim loss compensable under an applicable restitution statute A restitution order for authorized losses, with victim, causation, amount, allocation, payment, and finality governed by §§ 3663, 3663A, and 3664. The conviction statute, offense category, victim definition, causal limits, loss proof, offsets, deadlines, and any plea expansion must be established. CLM-SENT-036, CLM-SENT-037, CLM-SENT-038, CLM-SENT-039, CLM-SENT-040, CLM-SENT-041, CLM-SENT-042, CLM-SENT-043, CLM-SENT-044
REMEDY-CRIMINAL-FORFEITURE property or money judgment forfeitable under an offense-specific criminal statute Preliminary and final criminal-forfeiture orders as part of the sentence, with an ancillary proceeding for third-party interests. Charging notice, statutory nexus, property or amount, jury request, timing, substitute assets, third-party interests, and final judgment must be established. CLM-SENT-045, CLM-SENT-046, CLM-SENT-047, CLM-SENT-048, CLM-SENT-049, CLM-SENT-050, CLM-SENT-051
REMEDY-RULE35A-CORRECTION arithmetical, technical, or other clear error in the orally announced sentence Narrow correction within fourteen days after oral sentence. Not a general resentencing or reconsideration vehicle. CLM-SENT-060, CLM-R3536-004, CLM-R3536-006, CLM-R3536-012
REMEDY-RULE36-CLERICAL clerical error or oversight or omission in a judgment, order, or record After appropriate notice, clerical correction at any time. Rule 36 cannot substantively resentence or create a forfeiture never ordered. CLM-SENT-049, CLM-SENT-062, CLM-R3536-027, CLM-R3536-028, CLM-R3536-029, CLM-R3536-030
REMEDY-DIRECT-APPEAL-REVERSIBLE-ERROR reversible error within a properly noticed criminal appeal The disposition authorized by the governing statute and issue-specific remedial law, potentially affirmance, reversal, vacatur, remand, dismissal, new trial, acquittal, or resentencing. Jurisdiction, authorization, notice, waiver, preservation, prejudice, harmlessness, remedy-specific law, and the record must be established; no one remedy follows every error. CLM-DR-012, CLM-DR-016, CLM-DR-021, CLM-DR-022
REMEDY-ANDERS-NONFRIVOLOUS-ISSUE Anders review identifies an arguable nonfrivolous issue Appoint or retain counsel for adversarial briefing before merits disposition. The first-appeal posture, appointment status, actual record, circuit procedure, and identified issue must be established. CLM-DR-030, CLM-DR-031, CLM-DR-032
REMEDY-CERTIORARI-DISCRETIONARY-REVIEW compelling federal question after lower-court judgment A discretionary writ of certiorari and, if granted, Supreme Court review and disposition. Timeliness and proper filing do not create entitlement to review; Rule 10 considerations, jurisdiction, preservation, vehicle, record, and current filing rules control. CLM-DR-047, CLM-DR-048, CLM-DR-049, CLM-DR-050, CLM-DR-051
REMEDY-2255-MERITS-GRANT established § 2255(b) defect Vacate and set aside the judgment, then discharge, resentence, grant a new trial, or correct the sentence as appropriate. The selected remedy must match the proven constitutional, statutory, jurisdictional, or fundamental defect and remedy-specific law. CLM-2255-003, CLM-2255-059
REMEDY-CASTRO-UNWARNED-RECHARACTERIZATION unwarned first-motion recharacterization Do not count the recharacterized filing as the first § 2255 motion for later second-or-successive restrictions. Applies to the first-motion recharacterization posture and does not itself decide the underlying claim. CLM-2255-050
REMEDY-1631-TRANSFER-UNAUTHORIZED-2255 filing lodged in a court lacking jurisdiction Transfer to a court in which the matter could have been brought when filed, if the interest of justice supports transfer. Section 1631 does not make transfer automatic; successive classification, receiving-court authority, timeliness consequences, circuit practice, and the interest of justice must be established. CLM-SOS-030, CLM-SOS-031
REMEDY-2241-CUSTODY-REDRESS relief on a cognizable § 2241 custody claim Custody-focused relief tailored to the proven substantive entitlement and the decisionmaker's lawful authority. Section 2241 alone does not create entitlement to credits, placement, designation, recalculation, or release; saving-clause availability, merits, discretion, continuing injury, and circuit remedy law remain separate. CLM-2241F-019, CLM-2241S-014, CLM-2241S-022, CLM-2241S-027, CLM-BOPSC-027, CLM-BOPAR-014, CLM-BOPAR-023, CLM-BOPAR-027
REMEDY-2241-TRANSFER-SUBSTITUTION custodian or district problem after filing or transfer Depending on controlling law and the actual custody chain, substitution, retention, transfer, or dismissal may be considered. No automatic remedy is established; the court's authority over a respondent able to effect relief, the receiving court, interest of justice, timeliness, and circuit procedure must be established. CLM-2241F-016, CLM-2241F-017, CLM-2241S-023
REMEDY-CORAM-NOBIS-VACATUR fundamentally defective completed federal conviction Extraordinary relief from the original federal criminal judgment, including vacatur when the proven Morgan and controlling-circuit conditions warrant it. No automatic post-custody fallback; no-other-remedy, delay, fundamental-error, consequence, burden, Article III, circuit, and case-record requirements control. CLM-XWRIT-005, CLM-XWRIT-008, CLM-XWRIT-016
REMEDY-MANDAMUS-DUTY extraordinary order compelling a legally required act An extraordinary order requiring performance of a clear duty or confining a lower court to lawful authority when the governing mandamus conditions are met. Cannot substitute for appeal or dictate the exercise of lawful discretion; existing jurisdiction, other avenues, clear right and duty, appropriateness, and local procedure control. CLM-XWRIT-026, CLM-XWRIT-027, CLM-XWRIT-028, CLM-XWRIT-029, CLM-XWRIT-030, CLM-XWRIT-031
REMEDY-PRESIDENTIAL-CLEMENCY executive mercy for a federal offense A presidential pardon, commutation, reprieve, or remission on the terms stated in the grant. Executive and discretionary; not judicial correction, no guaranteed process or decision date, and the exact warrant plus independent law control every asserted consequence. CLM-CLEM-001, CLM-CLEM-003, CLM-CLEM-017, CLM-CLEM-028, CLM-CLEM-029
REMEDY-RULE35B-SUBSTANTIAL-ASSISTANCE qualifying post-sentencing substantial assistance on the government's motion A discretionary sentence reduction, including below a statutory minimum under current Rule 35(b)(3). Government motion, timing track, substantial assistance, court discretion, circuit law, and any agreement all remain controlling; pre-sentence assistance is considered under current (b)(4). CLM-R3536-013, CLM-R3536-014, CLM-R3536-018, CLM-R3536-019, CLM-R3536-020, CLM-R3536-023
REMEDY-CRACK-SENTENCE-ROUTE-CLASSIFICATION later crack-cocaine sentence reduction Route-specific consideration under First Step Act § 404 or § 3582(c)(2)/USSG § 1B1.10 when that route's eligibility and scope are satisfied. The two routes are not interchangeable and neither guarantees a reduction. CLM-R3536-034, CLM-R3536-035, CLM-R3536-036, CLM-R3536-037
REMEDY-BOP-COMPUTATION-CORRECTION proven BOP sentence-commencement or prior-credit error Agency correction through Part 542 or, for a live cognizable exhausted claim, judicial relief directing a lawful computation. The remedy cannot award double credit, rewrite a judgment, select a prison, or exceed § 2241 jurisdiction and controlling circuit law. CLM-BOPSC-016, CLM-BOPSC-018, CLM-BOPSC-026, CLM-BOPSC-027, CLM-BOPSC-029
REMEDY-BOP-DISCIPLINE-CREDIT procedurally or evidentially invalid disciplinary credit loss Administrative reversal, rehearing, expungement, restoration or recomputation as authorized; cognizable judicial relief must match the proven due-process or statutory error. No automatic remedy follows from a regulatory delay; protected interest, prejudice, exhaustion, custody, and circuit remedy law control. CLM-BOPDDR-015, CLM-BOPDDR-023, CLM-BOPDDR-025, CLM-BOPDDR-026, CLM-BOPDDR-029
REMEDY-BOP-LAWFUL-RECONSIDERATION omitted mandatory consideration or other reviewable legal error in BOP placement administration Where an authorized claim is proven, lawful reconsideration or compliance with the governing limit rather than judicial selection of the discretionary placement. Sections 3621(b) and 3625, cognizability, cause of action, exhaustion, sovereign immunity, and circuit law may limit or foreclose review. CLM-BOPPRE-028, CLM-BOPPRE-031, CLM-BOPAR-020, CLM-BOPAR-022, CLM-BOPAR-023
REMEDY-SR-MODIFICATION-TERMINATION ongoing supervised-release condition or need for continued supervision Before expiration, modification, reduction, enlargement, extension within the original maximum, or discretionary early termination after the one-year threshold as authorized by § 3583(e). Rule 32.1(c), jurisdiction, the term calculation, statutory factors, and claim-specific finality or waiver law apply. CLM-SRTERM-018, CLM-SRTERM-021, CLM-SRTERM-022, CLM-SRCOND-011, CLM-SRCOND-016
REMEDY-SR-REVOCATION-DISPOSITION proven supervised-release violation Continuation or modification where authorized, or revocation imprisonment and a possible additional supervised-release term within §§ 3583(e), (g), and (h). The original offense class and statute, mandatory provisions, Esteras, Tapia, Haymond, prior revocation record, and current Chapter 7 guidance apply. CLM-SRREV-016, CLM-SRREV-017, CLM-SRREV-019, CLM-SRREV-020, CLM-SRREV-022, CLM-SRREV-024
REMEDY-SR-CONDITION-REENTRY condition-caused reentry burden or separate collateral consequence Seek narrowly tailored condition modification or early termination when § 3583(e) reaches the burden; otherwise use the separately authorized consequence-specific decisionmaker and remedy. Termination does not erase the conviction or automatically alter state, agency, immigration, registration, licensing, housing, employment, or private consequences. CLM-SRCOND-015, CLM-SRCOND-020, CLM-SRCOND-021, CLM-SRCOND-022, CLM-SRCOND-023

Jurisdiction stops

Jurisdiction control Issue Rule Limitations Claims
JUR-CRIMINAL-VENUE-OFFENSE-DISTRICT ordinary federal criminal charging and trial venue The offense must ordinarily be prosecuted in a district where it was committed; constitutional text, Rule 18, the offense's conduct elements, and any statute control. No offense-specific or case-specific venue is decided. CLM-CHARGE-033
JUR-CRIMINAL-VENUE-CONTINUING-OFFENSE multi-district and specified continuing offenses Section 3237(a) permits the districts it identifies unless Congress expressly provides otherwise. The charged conduct elements and any offense-specific enactment control. CLM-CHARGE-034
JUR-GOV-SUPPRESSION-INTERLOCUTORY government interlocutory review of suppression or exclusion Section 3731 supplies appellate jurisdiction only for its covered orders and conditions, including certification and the Double Jeopardy limit. The precise order, timing, certification, jeopardy, and notice must be verified. CLM-MOTION-025, CLM-MOTION-026
JUR-DEF-DOUBLE-JEOPARDY-COLLATERAL defendant interlocutory criminal appeal Abney recognizes collateral-order jurisdiction for a colorable double-jeopardy denial, not a general route for other pretrial rulings. Every additional issue requires an independent jurisdictional basis. CLM-MOTION-027
JUR-SELL-MEDICATION-COLLATERAL interlocutory review of a Sell medication order A qualifying involuntary-medication order to restore competency is immediately appealable under the collateral-order doctrine. The order and ground for medication must match Sell's jurisdictional holding. CLM-MENTAL-012
JUR-POSTPLEA-CLASS-POWER-TO-CONVICT direct constitutional attack after an unconditional guilty plea A guilty plea by itself does not bar the bounded Class category challenging the government's constitutional power to convict without contradicting the charge, plea, or admitted facts. Agreement waiver, claim content, preservation, admitted facts, and other jurisdictional statutes remain controlling. CLM-PLEA-011, CLM-PLEA-012, CLM-PLEA-041
JUR-APPEAL-WAIVER-NOT-TOTAL notice of appeal when the agreement contains an appeal waiver An appeal waiver does not eliminate every possible appellate claim or counsel's duty to file a notice requested by the defendant. This does not decide the merits, waiver enforcement, scope, exceptions, or appellate jurisdiction over a particular issue. CLM-PLEA-038, CLM-PLEA-039
JUR-DOUBLE-JEOPARDY-ACQUITTAL-RETRIAL retrial after an insufficiency ruling or trial-error reversal A substantive insufficiency acquittal bars retrial, including one based on an erroneously added element; ordinary trial-error reversal does not. The exact ruling and offense must be classified; labels do not control and separate appeal statutes remain necessary. CLM-TRIAL-025, CLM-TRIAL-034
JUR-MISTRIAL-RETRIAL retrial after mistrial Manifest necessity can permit retrial after a court-declared mistrial; after a defendant-requested mistrial, only government conduct intended to provoke the request triggers Kennedy's retrial bar. Consent, objection, cause, alternatives, resolved counts, prosecutorial intent, and the complete record govern. CLM-TRIAL-028, CLM-TRIAL-029, CLM-TRIAL-030
JUR-SENTENCING-STATUTORY-RANGE-FACTS fact used to increase a statutory maximum or mandatory minimum Other than Apprendi's preserved prior-conviction exception, a statutory-range-increasing fact must be admitted or submitted to a jury and proved beyond a reasonable doubt. The charged offense, admission, verdict, prior-conviction issue, remedy, preservation, and retroactivity posture must be established. CLM-SENT-025, CLM-SENT-026
JUR-FINAL-SENTENCE-MODIFICATION district-court authority to modify an imposed term of imprisonment An imposed imprisonment term is final and may be modified only through an express route in § 3582(c) or another applicable statute or rule; § 3553(a) alone is not authority. The exact vehicle, timing, pending appeal, delegation, amendment, and controlling precedent must be identified. CLM-SENT-060, CLM-SENT-061, CLM-SENT-062, CLM-SENT-063
JUR-DIRECT-APPEAL-FINAL-DECISION defendant appeal from a federal criminal judgment Section 1291 covers final district-court decisions, and the sentence ordinarily constitutes final criminal judgment. The actual order, separate statutory routes, notice, standing, waiver, mootness, and remedy must be established. CLM-DR-011, CLM-DR-012
JUR-CRIMINAL-COLLATERAL-ORDER-NARROW interlocutory defendant criminal appeal Criminal finality is stringent and collateral-order review is narrow; Flanagan rejects immediate counsel-disqualification review while Abney recognizes colorable double-jeopardy review. The precise right, order, conclusiveness, separability, effective unreviewability, and controlling law must be established. CLM-DR-013, CLM-DR-014
JUR-CRIMINAL-SENTENCE-APPEAL review of an otherwise final federal sentence Section 3742 supplies party-specific sentence-appeal grounds and disposition authority. The party, statutory ground, preserved issue, waiver, record, and requested disposition control. CLM-DR-016
JUR-DEFERRED-RESTITUTION-NOTICE appeal of later deferred-restitution order A notice from the later restitution order is mandatory when the government properly objects, whether or not the rule is jurisdictional. The initial and amended judgments, notice text and dates, deferred order, and government invocation must be checked. CLM-DR-010
JUR-2255-SENTENCING-COURT initial federal collateral attack under § 2255 The motion is made to the court that imposed the challenged federal sentence. Custody, claim cognizability, saving-clause, successive, transfer, and separate-judgment issues remain distinct. CLM-2255-001, CLM-2255-004, CLM-2255-007
JUR-2255-APPEAL-COA appeal from final § 2255 order Section 2253(c)(1)(B) makes a certificate jurisdictional for the prisoner's appeal; timely notice remains separately required. Government appeals, interlocutory orders, postjudgment classification, issue expansion, and local procedure require separate analysis. CLM-2255-060, CLM-2255-065, CLM-2255-066, CLM-2255-067
JUR-2255-SUCCESSIVE-AUTHORIZATION district-court power over a legally second or successive § 2255 motion Court-of-appeals panel certification must precede district-court merits consideration of a filing legally classified as second or successive. Classification comes first; transfer, dismissal, mixed Rule 60 handling, and the consequence of a particular prior disposition require controlling circuit procedure. CLM-SOS-003, CLM-SOS-004, CLM-SOS-024, CLM-SOS-030
JUR-2241-CORE-CUSTODIAN-DISTRICT respondent and filing district for core present physical custody Default respondent is the immediate custodian and the issuing court must have jurisdiction over that custodian, ordinarily requiring filing in the district of confinement. Not a subject-matter-jurisdiction label; non-core custody, substitution, transfer, and the remedy for defects require posture- and circuit-specific authority. CLM-2241F-011, CLM-2241F-012, CLM-2241F-013, CLM-2241S-013, CLM-BOPSC-027, CLM-BOPPRE-030, CLM-BOPAR-014, CLM-BOPAR-015
JUR-2241-POSTFILING-TRANSFER physical transfer after a properly filed habeas application A later transfer does not necessarily defeat properly acquired habeas authority where a respondent in the original district remains able to effect relief. Actual custody chain, respondent authority, circuit substitution and transfer procedure, and redressability remain required. CLM-2241F-016, CLM-2241F-017, CLM-2241S-023, CLM-BOPSC-030, CLM-BOPAR-024
JUR-CORAM-ORIGINAL-CONVICTING-COURT federal coram nobis filing court Coram nobis is a step in the original federal criminal case and is sought from the court that entered the conviction. All Morgan thresholds, Article III injury, controlling circuit procedure, and the exact federal judgment remain required. CLM-XWRIT-005, CLM-XWRIT-006
JUR-MANDAMUS-APPELLATE-V-DISTRICT appellate supervision and district officer-duty mandamus A court-of-appeals petition directed to a district judge proceeds under § 1651 and Rule 21; a district action to compel a federal officer or agency duty proceeds, if available, under § 1361. Existing jurisdiction, proper respondent or target, clear duty, other remedies, local rules, and the requested act must be verified. CLM-XWRIT-026, CLM-XWRIT-027, CLM-XWRIT-028
JUR-CLEMENCY-FEDERAL-EXECUTIVE sovereign and decisionmaker for presidential clemency The President's clemency power concerns offenses against the United States; state and other sovereign convictions require the separately responsible clemency authority. Specified D.C. Code and territorial routes, military offenses, and mixed judgments require current offense-specific classification. CLM-CLEM-001, CLM-CLEM-002, CLM-CLEM-007
JUR-RULE35-36-SENTENCING-COURT court for Rules 35 and 36 Rules 35 and 36 operate in the original federal criminal case before the sentencing court, subject to a pending appeal and Rule 37 where applicable. The appealed order, docket status, circuit authority, and exact requested act remain required. CLM-R3536-003, CLM-R3536-008, CLM-R3536-032
JUR-SENTMOD-APPEAL-STATUTORY-BASIS sentence-modification appeal jurisdiction The asserted appellate basis must be identified under § 1291, § 3742, or other applicable law; this system does not state one universal jurisdictional route for every postjudgment sentence order. Vehicle, party, order, circuit doctrine, waiver, notice, and government authorization must be checked. CLM-R3536-040, CLM-R3536-044
JUR-BOP-SECTION-3625-CLASSIFICATION judicial review of BOP subchapter-C determinations Apply § 3625's express APA exclusion and any separate § 3621(b) nonreviewability to the actual source and nature of the decision; classify distinct statutory, constitutional, and ultra vires claims separately. Cognizability, cause of action, exhaustion, sovereign immunity, remedy, and controlling circuit law remain separate. CLM-BOPSC-007, CLM-BOPDDR-040, CLM-BOPPRE-028, CLM-BOPAR-019, CLM-BOPAR-020, CLM-BOPAR-022
JUR-SR-SECTION-3605-TRANSFER district holding supervised-release jurisdiction after transfer A § 3605 transfer requires receiving-court concurrence; supervision elsewhere does not alone transfer judicial jurisdiction. Verify the docketed order, concurrence, effective date, and any later transfer. CLM-SRTERM-027, CLM-SRTERM-028, CLM-SRCOND-014
JUR-SR-RULE32-CROSS-DISTRICT initial appearance and transfer from a district lacking revocation jurisdiction Apply Rule 32.1(a)(5)'s distinct violation-in-arrest-district and violation-elsewhere paths; the jurisdiction court conducts the revocation hearing. Arrest district, violation location, certified records, identity, and transfer history must be verified. CLM-SRREV-003, CLM-SRREV-004, CLM-SRREV-005
JUR-SR-SECTION-3583-I post-expiration revocation jurisdiction Delayed revocation exists only when a warrant or summons issued before expiration, the matter arose before expiration, and the later period is reasonably necessary. The term calculation and issuance record are jurisdictionally material; no automatic absconding tolling applies. CLM-SRREV-039, CLM-SRREV-040

Mandatory final check

Before selecting any route, check pending proceedings, preservation, timeliness, exhaustion, custody, mootness, proper respondent, venue, successive consequences, waiver, standard of review, available remedy, appealability, COA, local rules, controlling circuit law, and the evidence needed to prove each factual predicate.

Claim-level source records