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Rule 1 – Title, Scope, and Application of Rules

May 13, 2021 | Criminal Procedure, Maine

(a) Title. These Rules may be known and cited as the Maine Rules of Unified Criminal Procedure.
(b) Scope; Application. These Rules are effective upon the date stated in subdivision (e) below for each county or region. They govern the procedure in the proceedings specified below brought in any county or region with a Unified Criminal Docket after unification takes effect, and also proceedings specified below then pending, except to the extent that in the opinion of the court their application in a particular action pending when they take effect would not be feasible or would work an injustice, in which event the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure apply:

(1) In all criminal proceedings, including appellate and post-conviction review proceedings, extradition proceedings, proceedings on a post-conviction motion for DNA analysis, and proceedings on a post-judgment motion by a person whose identity allegedly has been stolen and falsely used; and
(2) In proceedings before justices of the peace and bail commissioners; and
(3) In juvenile crime proceedings (including appellate proceedings) to the extent consistent with the Maine Juvenile Code.

These Rules are not applicable to forfeiture of property for a violation of a statute of the State of Maine or the collection of fines and penalties. These Rules are not applicable to revocation proceedings under Title 17-A, sections 1205 through 1207, section 1233 or sections 1349 -D through 1349-F except to the extent and under the conditions stated in those sections. These Rules are not applicable to proceedings for administrative inspection warrants, traffic infractions, actions for license revocation or suspension, and land use violations addressed in Rules 80E, 80F, 80G, and 80K of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, except as those civil rules may reference or incorporate provisions of these Rules. Rules 110 and 111 of these Rules supersede Rules 80H and 80I, respectively, of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure.

(c) Procedure When None Specified. When no procedure is specifically prescribed, the court shall proceed in any lawful manner not inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States or of the State of Maine, the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure, these Rules, or any applicable statutes.
(d) Forms. Forms do not accompany these Rules. Forms are currently prepared by the Judicial Branch Forms Committee and, to a limited extent, by the Supreme Judicial Court. Forms are intended to be both sufficient under the Rules and reflective of the simplicity and brevity of statement that the Rules contemplate. Forms are available through the court clerks’ offices and, to an increasing extent, on the Judicial Branch website.
(e) Effective Date of These Rules. The Maine Rules of Unified Criminal Procedure govern proceedings indicated in subdivision (b) in all counties, effective July 1, 2015. On July 1, 2015, or on the prior effective dates indicated below for each county, the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure and/or prior Administrative Orders governing Unified Criminal Docket proceedings in any particular county shall cease to apply to govern proceedings in that county. Decisions made, actions taken, orders issued, and judgments entered pursuant to the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure or prior Unified Criminal Docket rules shall continue to be valid and have full force and effect.

(1) These Rules took effect on January 1, 2015, in Cumberland County, Franklin County, Hancock County, Penobscot County, Piscataquis County, Sagadahoc County, and Somerset County.
(2) These Rules took effect on April 1, 2015, in Kennebec County, Knox County, Lincoln County, and Waldo County.
(3) These Rules took effect on July 1, 2015, in Androscoggin County, Aroostook County, Oxford County, Washington County, and York County.
(f) Effective Date of Amendments. Amendments to these Rules will take effect upon the day specified in the order adopting them. They govern all proceedings in actions brought after they take effect and also all further proceedings in actions then pending, except to the extent that in the opinion of the court their application in a particular action pending when they take effect would not be feasible or would work injustice, in which event the former procedure applies.

Me. R. Uni. Crim. P. 1

Last amended effective November 2, 2016.