(a) Initiation. At any time before issuance of a mandate, the Appellate Court or the panel of that Court to which the action has been assigned may certify a question of law or the entire action to the Supreme Court. Upon transmission to the Supreme Court, a copy of the certification shall be forwarded to the Chief Judge of the Appellate Court and to the parties. The Supreme Court may consider the certification pursuant to its authority to issue a writ of certiorari on its own motion.

(b) Content. The certification shall briefly describe the action, state the question of law and the facts on which the question arises, and state the reason for certification.

(c) Disposition of Certification. The Supreme Court may refuse the certification or may issue a writ of certiorari that (1) accepts the certification as submitted, (2) modifies the questions of law certified, (3) includes the entire action although only a question of law was certified, or (4) limits review to only a question of law although the entire action was certified. The Clerk of the Supreme Court shall send the order refusing the certification or the writ of certiorari to the Appellate Court and to the parties.

(d) Record Extract and Briefs. If the Supreme Court issues a writ of certiorari, the filing of a record extract and briefs shall be governed by Rules 8-501 through 8-511 unless the Court orders otherwise.

Source: This Rule is derived from former Rules 1015 and 815.