NATIONWIDE APPELLATE PRACTICE LAWYER

Appellate law is the process of appealing a legal decision that a lower court has already made. This type of law is used in many areas of law, so it can be challenging to understand what is meant when lawyers talk about appeals and appellate litigation. Appellate law entails appealing the judgment of a lower court to a superior court for further examination. This lower court could be a trial court or an administrative agency. 

Appellate law involves appealing a lower court's decision to a higher court for review. Sometimes the lower court is a trial court, and sometimes it is an administrative government agency. Appellate law is a practice in which an attorney appeals to the lower court’s ruling. The type of court case will determine how the appeals court will approach the hearing. It may be allowed to fully consider the case or only review the evidence initially presented. It may also be limited to determining if the lower court acted incorrectly or made a serious mistake. In some cases, the appeals court will send the case back to the lower court with instructions. In others, such as an administrative decision appeal, the process may end with the appeals court's ruling. 

It is also important to understand that there are various levels of appeal. The court in which an appellate law attorney argues your appeal will depend on several different factors that you should discuss with your lawyer. Even when you lose a case on appeal, it may be possible to appeal to an even higher court with your appellate attorney’s assistance. 

For example, a federal court case in Colorado will be heard initially in a federal district court. If a person or entity loses that case at the district court level, that party may be able to appeal to a circuit court. The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit hears federal appeals cases from Colorado. If a party loses an appeal in the Tenth Circuit, they may be able to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. State courts also have specific routes for appeals, but depending upon the issue in the state court system, it may be possible to have the case heard by the Tenth Circuit and ultimately by the U.S. Supreme Court even if the case began as a state law case as opposed to a federal law case. 

If you have questions, an experienced appellate law attorney who understands the areas of law can speak with you today about your options. 

Appellate lawyers who represent clients at the appeal level assist clients in many ways. For example, your appellate law attorney will: 

• Provide appellate guidance at the trial court level and arbitration to preserve rights to appeal
• Review trial records in detail
• Research and analyze existing case law and court decisions, taking into account pending appeals on similar legal matters
• Frame the issues for your appeal
• Draft appellate documents and briefs for your case
• Advocate for clients in appellate courtrooms and before appellate judges; and appeal to a higher court if necessary

In appellate courts, a dissent is a formal written disagreement with the majority decision on a case by one or more judges. This dissenting opinion goes beyond simply voting against the majority. It details why the dissenting judge(s) believe the majority's reasoning or outcome is incorrect, outlining legal arguments and interpretations that support their position.
While a dissent doesn't become a binding law, it serves several important purposes. First, it preserves a record of alternative legal perspectives on the issue. This can be crucial for future cases where similar questions arise. Judges in subsequent cases can consider the dissenting arguments and potentially adopt them if they find them persuasive. Second, dissents can influence the development of the law. If a well-reasoned dissent gains traction in the legal community, it may eventually persuade other judges or even lead to legislative changes.

The appeals process allows parties in a lawsuit to challenge a lower court's decision in a higher court. If a party believes the lower court made a significant error in interpreting the law or applying it to the facts of the case, they can file an appeal. This initiates a review process by a higher court, typically called an appellate court.

The appellate court doesn't conduct a new trial. Instead, it reviews the written record from the lower court, which includes transcripts of the trial, any exhibits or evidence presented, and the lower court's ruling. Additionally, both parties submit legal briefs arguing their case and why the appellate court should rule in their favor. The appellate court will then hold oral arguments, where attorneys for each side can present their key points to the judges.

Based on this review, the appellate court can make several decisions:

• Affirm: If the appellate court finds no errors in the lower court's decision, they will affirm the ruling.

• Reverse: If the appellate court finds the lower court made a mistake that significantly impacted the outcome, they may reverse the decision and potentially send the case back for a new trial.

• Modify: In some cases, the appellate court might modify the lower court's decision without needing a retrial. This could involve changing the amount of an award or altering specific terms of the ruling.

• Remand: The appellate court may also remand the case back to the lower court with specific instructions on how to address the identified errors.

Different types of appellate law cases have different standards of review. The appropriate standard of review is governed by federal law. In general, lower court rulings are reviewed based on one of the following three standards of review: 

• De novo review: This is the standard of review in which a court only reviews a lower court’s decision when a question of law is the primary issue in the lower court’s case. The appeals court will look at the case anew from the same position the district court did. For example, questions of standing and ripeness are reviewed de novo, as are questions about the interpretation of a statute or a contract. A question about the constitutionality of a particular law is also reviewed de novo.
• Clear error review: The appellate court will review a lower court’s ruling for clear error or will determine whether the lower court’s ruling was clearly erroneous when the primary issue was a question of fact. When an appeals court reviews for clear error, it does not look at the case anew as with a de novo review. Instead, the appellate court will be deferential to the lower court and will only overturn the ruling if it finds there was a clear error. Clear error is difficult to find.
• Abuse of discretion review: An appellate court will review a lower court’s ruling for abuse of discretion when the primary issue concerns the lower court’s discretion. What does this mean? In short, if there is a possibility that the lower court exercised its discretion to reach a conclusion that is not supported by the law or the facts of the case, then the appellate court may review for abuse of discretion. This type of review may be appropriate in cases where the appellant argues that the district court misapplied the law or applied the wrong law to the legal issue at stake.

If you need to file an appeal, one of the most important questions you should be asking is how much time you have to file that appeal before the clock runs out. The answer to this question can vary significantly depending on your case type and the court in which you are filing your appeal.

Whitcomb Selinsky, PC is a firm that focuses on appellate-level advocacy, and we have built a reputation for winning hard-fought appeals. Unlike the drama and flair of courtroom trials, which we also enjoy and perform well, appellate work is detail-oriented and arduous. We pride ourselves on persuasive legal writing that is succinct and on point.

We maintain top-notch research capabilities while promoting efficiency to save you time and money. Understanding the odds of winning an appeal from a trial verdict or dispositive motion is long in the best situations; our appellate team evaluates cases on their merits in advance. This approach can help our client firms or individual appellants save time and money. If your case does warrant appeal, then skilled brief writing will make the difference between winning and losing.

Our appellate practice group has written thousands of trial- and appellate-level briefs successfully. We can either take over your case at the appeal level or directly perform the valuable task of scheduling and briefing your appeal. Our lawyers are knowledgeable in administrative, government procurement, constitutional, child advocacy, employment, criminal, trademark, trade secrets, and fiduciary law. However, because appellate-level advocacy frequently turns on nuanced issues of law rather than being fact-specific or tied to a few particular areas, our appellate practice is willing to discuss any appellate issue. Our attorneys are admitted in several state and federal venues and can quickly gain admission into almost any federal jurisdiction.

As mentioned above, appellate courts have a range of options when reviewing a lower court's decision:

• Uphold (Affirm): This is the most common outcome. If the appellate court finds the lower court applied the law correctly and there's no basis to overturn the decision, they will affirm the ruling.

• Reverse: A reversal occurs when the appellate court determines the lower court made a legal error that substantially prejudiced one party. In this case, the appellate court will overturn the lower court's decision. Depending on the nature of the error, the appellate court may:

  Order a new trial: If the error significantly affected the fairness of the trial, a new trial may be necessary. 

  Issue-specific instructions: The appellate court might give the lower court specific instructions on how to address the error without requiring a complete retrial.

• Modify: The appellate court can modify the lower court's decision if it finds an error but believes a new trial isn't necessary. For instance, it might adjust the amount of damages awarded.

• Remand: In some cases, the appellate court might remand the case back to the lower court for further proceedings. This could involve taking new evidence, reconsidering a specific legal issue, or following specific instructions provided by the appellate court.

Appellate rights refer to the legal right of a party in a lawsuit to challenge a judgment made by a lower court in a higher court. This right is typically enshrined in a country's legal system and allows parties to seek review of a lower court's decision they believe is incorrect. The specific scope of these rights can vary depending on the jurisdiction (country or state) and the type of case.
For instance, some jurisdictions might limit appeals to cases where the lower court made a significant error of law. Others might allow appeals based on factual errors. Additionally, there may be time limits for filing an appeal and specific procedures that must be followed to ensure a valid appeal.