Appellate Advocacy
Appellate advocacy is a specialized area of the law that is different from trial advocacy. When a party initially files a lawsuit in a Florida state court, the action starts in either a county court or a circuit court, depending upon the subject matter of the suit. If a party is unhappy with the outcome of the case, the party can usually appeal to the next higher court for reconsideration. Cases tried in county court are appealed to the circuit court, and cases tried in the circuit court are appealed to the district court of appeals.
Appellate decisions themselves may also be appealed. Appellate decisions from a circuit court are appealed to a district court and appellate decisions from a district court are appealed to the highest State court, the Florida Supreme Court. Because of the rights afforded to us by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights, matters decided by the Florida Supreme Court may sometimes be appealed to the highest federal court in the land, the U.S. Supreme Court.
For matters initially tried in the federal court system, there is a similar hierarchy for appeals as found in the state system. Mr. Boatman is a member of both the State of Florida Bar and the federal bars of the Northern, Middle, and Southern Districts of Florida, as well as the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, so he can assist with appeals emanating from either the state or federal jurisdiction.
At trial, a lawyer presents both the facts of the case and the relevant legal authorities in an effort to achieve victory for the client. The law is presented to the trial judge, and the facts are presented to the “finder of fact,” which can be either the judge or a jury, depending upon the nature of the case.
At the appellate level, when seeking to have a trial-level decision overturned, the lawyer appealing the lower court outcome is confined to presenting the appellate court information that was previously presented at the trial level. Usually, appellate courts will not re-weigh evidence in order to determine matters of fact; the greater majority of appellate decisions hinge on whether the trial court correctly applied the law to the set of facts presented at trial.
So how do you know if you need an appellate attorney? Just because you are not happy with the way your case was decided does not mean you can, or even should, appeal the decision. An appellate court is highly deferential to a lower court's factual findings because the lower court, being present at the trial, is considered to be in a better position to make factual determinations which are often derived from live testimony of witnesses. An appellate court will only overturn factual findings that are clearly erroneous-- and this is a very high burden to meet.
On the other hand, lower courts can, and often do, miss-apply the law to the facts. This is where a skilled appellate attorney is invaluable. A diligent appellate attorney will review your case materials from trial (called “the record”) to determine whether all judicial procedural requirements were met. If it is evident from the record that such requirements were not met, you may have a basis for an appeal. A good appellate attorney will then research your issue and the relevant case law to analyze whether your case is one that should be reviewed by a higher court.
Of course, there are times when you need an appellate lawyer even if you were victorious at trial if the other party to the lawsuit believes your victory was unlawful and files an appeal of the decision. In order to defend the lawfulness of the trial court’s decision, your attorney will counter the arguments made by the appealing party’s attorney.
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