QUESTIONS OF LAW IN SUPREME COURT CERTIFIED

Iowa Code tit. XV, ch. 684A

in effect

Iowa Code § 684A.1 Power to answer.

684A.1. Power to answer. The supreme court may answer questions of law certified to it by the supreme court of the United States, a court of appeals of the United States, a United States district court or the highest appellate court or the intermediate appellate court of another state, when requested by the certifying court, if there are involved in a proceeding before it questions of law of this state which may be determinative of the cause then pending in the certifying court and as to which it appears to the certifying court there is no controlling precedent in the decisions of the appellate courts of this state. [C81, §684A.1]

Iowa Code § 684A.2 Method of invoking.

684A.2. Method of invoking. This chapter may be invoked by an order of a court referred to in section 684A.1 upon the court’s own motion or upon the motion of a party to the cause. [C81, §684A.2]

Iowa Code § 684A.3 Contents of certification order.

684A.3. Contents of certification order. A certification order shall set forth the questions of law to be answered and a statement of facts relevant to the questions certified, showing fully the nature of the controversy in which the questions arose. [C81, §684A.3]

Iowa Code § 684A.4 Preparation of certification order.

684A.4. Preparation of certification order. The certification order shall be prepared by the certifying court, signed by the judge presiding at the hearing, and forwarded to the supreme court by the clerk of the certifying court under its official seal. The supreme court may require the original or copies of all or of a portion of the record before the certifying court to be filed with the certification order, if, in the opinion of the supreme court, the record or portion of it is necessary in answering the questions. [C81, §684A.4]

Iowa Code § 684A.5 Costs of certification.

684A.5. Costs of certification. Fees and costs shall be the same as in civil appeals docketed before the supreme court and shall be equally divided between the parties unless otherwise ordered by the certifying court in its order of certification. [C81, §684A.5]

Iowa Code § 684A.6 Procedure.

684A.6. Procedure. The supreme court may prescribe rules of procedure concerning the answering and certification of questions of law under this chapter. [C81, §684A.6] 83 Acts, ch 186, §10128, 10201; 98 Acts, ch 1115, §17, 21 Rules adopted by the supreme court are published in the compilation “Iowa Court Rules”

Iowa Code § 684A.7 Opinion.

684A.7. Opinion. The written opinion of the supreme court stating the law governing the questions certified shall be sent by the clerk under the seal of the supreme court to the certifying court and to the parties. [C81, §684A.7]

Iowa Code § 684A.8 Power to certify.

684A.8. Power to certify. The supreme court or the court of appeals, on its own motion or the motion of a party, may order certification of questions of law to the highest court of another state when it appears to the certifying court that there are involved in a proceeding before the court questions of law of the receiving state which may be determinative of the cause then pending in the certifying court and it appears to the certifying court that there are no controlling precedents in the decisions of the highest court or intermediate appellate courts of the receiving state. [C81, §684A.8]

Iowa Code § 684A.9 Procedure on certifying.

684A.9. Procedure on certifying. The procedures for certification from this state to the receiving state are those provided in the laws of the receiving state. [C81, §684A.9]

Iowa Code § 684A.10 Construction.

684A.10. Construction. This chapter shall be so construed as to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law of those states which enact it. [C81, §684A.10]

Iowa Code § 684A.11 Title.

684A.11. Title. This chapter may be cited as the “Uniform Certification of Questions of Law Act”. [C81, §684A.11]

Source: Iowa Legislature (legis.iowa.gov)URL: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/law/iowaCode/sections?codeChapter=684A&year=2026Fetched: 10/20/2026