The Appeal Process
If you find yourself involved in criminal or civil litigation then you may end up in a trial. Your trial could be decided by a jury or, in some cases, by a judge. At the end of the trial the jury or the judge will render a verdict and a judgement will be entered in your case. If you are dissatisfied with the results of a trial, in almost all cases you have an absolute right to file an appeal.
An appeal is a formal document stating that you disagree with what happened at the trial. In Tennessee, in the case of civil trials, an appeal is normally filed with the Tennessee Court of Appeals. An appeal from a state criminal trial would be filed in the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals. An appeal is not a rehearing nor a retrying of the facts of the case. An appeal basically tells the Appeals Court about the facts that were presented at trial and makes an argument that based on what happened at the trial, or, in some cases, what did not happen at the trial, is a reason for either a retrial or some other relief. Normally, it is the party that loses at trial that files the appeal. Once an appeal is filed the other side has a right to respond and file papers arguing against the appeal.
Either party involved in an appeal can ask for oral argument. After the papers are filed by both sides to the appeal, and if oral argument is requested and granted, the Court of Appeals will assemble a panel of appellate judges to hear oral argument. Oral argument is very helpful to the Appellate Court in most cases. This is an opportunity for the attorneys representing the parties in the appeal to explain to the Court of Appeals why their client's appeal should or should not be granted. The appellate judges very often ask questions of the attorneys. However, in most cases, no new evidence is presented to the Appellate Court. The Appellate Court only review the evidence that was presented in the trial court.
After oral argument is presented to the Appellate Court, the court will render an opinion and rule on whether there was any problem with the trial or whether the trial judgement should be changed or be affirmed. The Appellate Court renders a written opinion and many times the opinion will be published in the official books containing court cases.
The appellate process in State Court is very similar to the appellate process in Federal Court. Both the State and Federal Court systems grant a losing party the right to appeal the trial judgement.
If the losing party does not like the opinion of the Court of Appeals, then a further review or appeal is sometimes possible. If the Court of Appeals rules against you after hearing the appeal, you have the opportunity to ask the Supreme Court to hear the case. This is done by filing a petition for certiorari to the Supreme Court. Both the State of Tennessee and the Federal Court system allow the request for a hearing by the Supreme Court of either the State or the Federal system. However, the Supreme Court has discretion and does not have to grant a hearing. If the Supreme Court denies the request then the ruling of the Court of Appeals is the final outcome of the case. Typically, very few cases are accepted by the Supreme Court for review.
If you contemplate going to trial and are discussing and looking
for an attorney to represent you, or defend you, you should discuss with the attorney at the beginning of the representation
the appellate process. Find out how the attorney charges in the event of an appeal and any other costs that may
be involved in going further that a trial in your case.
Provided by the law offices of:
A. Philip Lomonaco
800 S. Gay St., Suite 2610
Knoxville, TN 37929
(865) 521-7422
www.knox-law.com
izyglty@usit.net