The Court of Appeals is an intermediate appellate court and Indiana's second-highest court. Its jurisdiction is noted in Appellate Rule 5. The Court hears appeals from the state's trial courts in most instances. Some exceptions include:

• Cases in which the death penalty or life-without-parole is rendered (appealed directly to the Indiana Supreme Court);
• Cases in which statutes are declared unconstitutional by a trial court (automatically appealed to the Supreme Court);
• Attorney disciplinary cases (which also go to the Supreme Court);
• Cases involving taxation (which go to the Indiana Tax Court).

As an appellate court, the Indiana Court of Appeals does not preside over trials. The Court instead reviews matters of law from the trial court record and usually answers a specific legal question or questions raised in the initial trial or by the trial court's decision.

The Court of Appeals must accept all appeals sent to it; members do not have the option to decline individual appeals. As a result, the 15 members of the Court of Appeals issue some 2,500 written opinions each year. A decision of the Indiana Court of Appeals is final unless granted further review by the Indiana Supreme Court. The majority of appeals filed in Indiana are decided by the Court of Appeals.  

The Court makes all opinions available on its website—some are “for publication” and can be cited as precedent for subsequent cases; others are marked “NFP” or “not for publication,” and may not be used in citing precedent.

The Court hears cases only in three-judge panels. All panels have statewide jurisdiction and rotate three times per year. Cases are randomly assigned.

There is no deadline for the Court to reach a decision in each case; however, the Court strives to issue decisions within four months of receiving an appeal.  Opinions are often issued earlier.