New Jersey Appeals

Information Provided by our New Jersey Appeals Lawyer, Mark S. Guralnick

In most courts, if you are dissatisfied with the results of a case, you may file an appeal with the assistance of a New Jersey appeals lawyer. Usually, it is necessary for the case to be completed before you are eligible to file an appeal to a higher court. In other words, the judge must issue a final order or a final judgment before you can file your appeal. However, some states permit the filing of an appeal before a case is completed. This is generally known as an interlocutory appeal, but there are special rules and procedures for filing such an appeal. Not all interlocutory appeals are accepted by the court.

A Notice of Appeal is required in most jurisdictions to file your appeal. It is very important that the notice of appeal is filed within the deadline allowed by your state for filing appeals. In many states, the deadline is 30 days to appeal to a higher court. However, in some places, depending on the kind of case or the kind of court involved, there may be only 10 days or 20 days to file an appeal. Some states have longer deadlines. For example, in New Jersey, a party may file an appeal within 45 days from the entry of a final judgment. The deadline for filing an appeal is generally a very strict one.

To get an appeal started, it is often necessary to file additional papers. Some states require case information statements or other summaries of a case and the parties involved in order to get the appeal off the ground. You may be required to pay both a filing fee to start the appeal, as well as a deposit for costs (required in some states). In addition, almost every court requires that a complete copy of the transcripts of the trial or the hearing which you are appealing be forwarded to the appeals court. Different procedures exist in different states for having the hearing transcribed and the record of the proceedings forwarded to the appellate judges.

An appeal does not automatically mean that you get a new day in court. Indeed, most appeals go to courts which are not set up for new trials. At the appeals court, a panel of judges will review the decision by the first judge, reading the transcripts and any evidence that is provided to them, and deciding whether the first judge made a legal error. If the error is a minor one, it is usually referred to as harmless error. Cases are not overturned because of harmless error. However, if you succeed in demonstrating that the first judge in the lower court made a significant error, sometimes referred to as reversible error, then the appeals court may reverse the decision or overturn your case.

Most appeals are not successful, however. This is because the person or lawyer filing the appeal has not properly presented the appellate issues or responsibly researched the law in your case. Appellate judges are very seasoned and experienced judges. It is important that your case is prepared thoroughly, well researched, and presented in the format required by your local court rules.

An appeal may occur in any type of case including a family law or personal injury case, but often, it is the result of a criminal case. If you feel that you were wrongfully convicted, it is very important that you seek the assistance of an experienced New Jersey criminal lawyer in order to make sure that your appeal is filed correctly.

When an appeals court agrees that a lower court made an error in rendering its decision, it may remand the case back to the lower court for a new trial or a new hearing on specific issues.

If you are pursuing an appeal, the most important task will be to research and write the appellate brief. The brief contains a statement of the procedure of history of the case, the factual background of the case, and all of the legal arguments which you wish to make. In those legal arguments are the reasons why you believe the lower court made an error in rendering its decision and why you believe the appellate court must reverse the decision or modify it in some way. Sometimes it is not necessary to file an appeal to get what you want. Sometimes you can accomplish what you want by filing a motion for reconsideration, a motion for rehearing, a motion for new trial, or a motion for relief from the judgment. Such motions may have special deadlines of their own, and you should consult your attorney in your state to determine which deadlines apply. If you need assistance with your appeal, please feel free to call a New Jersey appeals attorney at the Law Offices of Mark S. Guralnick at 1-866-337-2900.