A habeas corpus petition attacking a criminal conviction or sentence shall be filed within two years from the date of final judgment in the trial court. To use this form, you must be a person who is or will be serving a sentence under a judgment against you in a state court.These instructions and forms are provided to those who seek to petition the Supreme. The federal habeas petition has to be filed in the United States District Court that sits in the District covering the circuit court of conviction and sentence. Federal habeas corpus is a procedure under which a federal court may review the legality of an individual's incarceration. The law in the area is an intricate weave of statute and case law. In other words, you have one year to file a habeas petition if you appealed your case or two years if you did not. It can be influential, however, and provide you some ideas on how to distinguish your case from the law and facts in the majority opinion. (a) Form of petition; copies. The document will appear in the Documents section with the file name in the Name section.