Questions about an appeal

Not long. The deadline is set by court rule and starts when the judgment is entered, and in many courts it is a matter of weeks. Write to us as soon as you have the judgment, even if you have not decided.

No. An appeals court decides on the trial record as it stands. New evidence belongs in a motion in the trial court or, after a conviction, in a post-conviction petition.

Yes. Most of our appeals were tried by someone else. A fresh reader is often an advantage.

We quote the fee in writing after we have read the judgment and the docket, stage by stage, before you commit. Transcripts and filing fees are separate costs, paid to the court reporter and the clerk.

Not by itself. A money judgment can usually be collected unless the court grants a stay, which may require a bond. We raise this in the first conversation.

It varies by court. Many appeals take a year or more from the notice to the decision. We send you the schedule once the court sets it.

There may still be steps: a petition for rehearing, or a request for review by a higher court. They are granted rarely, and we tell you plainly whether one is worth filing.

Not always. Some courts decide many appeals on the briefs alone. When there is argument, the lawyer who wrote the brief argues it.