Appeals

Our experience in appellate matters ranges from cases before intermediate state appellate courts to those before the Supreme Court of the United States.

We handle both civil and criminal appeals, and our lawyers have been involved in obtaining appellate victories where the stakes have included civil disputes worth more than $1 billion, the liberty of an individual, the ongoing operation of a corporation, and the constitutionality of an important law.

We may be asked to work with trial counsel or co-counsel with another firm on an appeal.  Or we may be asked to handle an appeal on our own.  We are fine with either approach.

Often, clients that have experienced an unfavorable result in a trial court will seek advice and new representation at the post-trial motion stage and we are prepared to wade into a matter at that point as well.  Often it is most useful to engage us then as it can provide an opportunity to shape issues that may be important to an appeal.

Our appellate lawyers work closely with our trial lawyers during the course of matters while they are in the trial court and provide the team with an extraordinary resource in terms of briefing issues quickly and thoroughly. This can be a particular advantage in the course of complex trials.

When not counsel of record for a party, our lawyers have been called upon to write amicus curiae briefs for a number of organizations on important issues in various courts, and in that role sometimes are asked to “moot” a lawyer who may be arguing the side our client supports.

Based on experience our lawyers have had with the Supreme Court of the United States – both in the role of advocate and in the role of judicial clerk – we can provide valuable insights in seeking or opposing review by the Court and in advocacy before the Office of Solicitor General, whose views may be sought as the Court decides whether to take a case.