Governor Stein signed a state budget into law today, triggering happy headlines about teacher pay and investments in community colleges, amidst debates over a number of other provisions. Tweaks to our appellate system tend not to make the front page, but there is at least one thing worth noting.
Borrowing…
Continue Reading State Budget Ushers In Modest Appellate ChangesRegistration for the best national appellate CLE program is now open.
Here’s the link: https://judges.org/appellate…
Continue Reading Appellate Judges Education Institute 2026Petitions for a writ of certiorari, particularly in criminal cases, are no stranger to this…
Continue Reading The Right Way to WritNorth Carolina’s appellate lawyers enjoyed an hour chock-full of insights from Justice Dietz and…
Continue Reading Annual Appellate CLE: Tips from the BenchSuppose the Supreme Court of North Carolina jettisoned In re Civil Penalty—the case requiring…
Continue Reading Alternatives to Horizontal Stare DecisisOn March 20, the Supreme Court issued an opinion in In re N.M.W., No.
Continue Reading We need to talk about… In re Civil Penalty (again)Subscribe to North Carolina Appellate Practice Blog
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Sometimes you fall headlong into a chorus you thought you knew by heart—only to discover the bridge is where all the action is. For appellate practitioners, that action seems to…
Continue Reading Complicated: Premature Oral Notices of Appeal & Writs of CertiorariWe Are One Step Closer to an En Banc Rehearing in the North Carolina Court of Appeals
As I forecasted two weeks ago, the State v. Hardaway case could present a clean opportunity for the North Carolina Court of Appeals to hold its first-ever en banc (re)hearing. …
Continue Reading We Are One Step Closer to an En Banc Rehearing in the North Carolina Court of AppealsYesterday, I posted on the State v. Hardaway case and the use of a “concurrence dubitante” by Judge Hampson to flag his concerns with the binding holding of the earlier-decided…
Continue Reading Could We Finally Have an En Banc Argument in the NC Court of Appeals?In 1904, North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Robert M. Douglas wrote a separate opinion in a case called Westbrooks v. Wilson, 135 N.C. 400, expressing some reservations about the…
Continue Reading What is a Concurrence Dubitante?This blog has spent a lot of ink discussing file stamps. Indeed, two Halloweens ago we devoted an entire blog post to the ghoulish topic of missing file stamps and…
Continue Reading Belt and Suspenders, Appellate Rule 9(b)(3), and File StampsAppellate Rules Amended to Allow Retired Judges to Stay on North Carolina’s Beaches
Yesterday, the Supreme Court of North Carolina amended Appellate Rule 36(b) to conform with the General Assembly’s recent amendment to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-283. Both under the Appellate…
Continue Reading Appellate Rules Amended to Allow Retired Judges to Stay on North Carolina’s BeachesIt’s the stuff of nightmares: you drop your notice of appeal in the mail 24 days after a summary-judgment order is entered against your client, trusting the post office will…
Continue Reading Court of Appeals Saves Appellant From Post Office PredicamentUntil recently, a single judge sitting on a panel of the North Carolina Court of Appeals could tee up an issue for the Supreme Court of North Carolina simply by…
Continue Reading Are North Carolina Court of Appeals Judges Dissenting Less?Registration is now open for the North Carolina Bar Association’s 2025 Appellate Practice Section CLE – Elevate Your Appellate Practice. This is going to be a terrific event, with a…
Continue Reading Register Now and Save – NCBA’s 2025 Appellate CLEAbout this Blog
To smoothly navigate the appellate path, you need the guidance and knowledge of experienced appellate practitioners.