North Carolina Appellate Practice BlogThe North Carolina Appellate Practice Blog strives to offer seasoned and beginning appellate practitioners alike a convenient source of news, information, tips, and resources for practicing law in North Carolina’s State and Federal Appellate Courts.

Finding success on appeal depends not just on counsel’s expertise in the substantive law of the case, but on an active understanding of the appellate rules, procedures, strategies, and pitfalls.  Over the years, we have found that the peculiarities of appellate practice can challenge even those lawyers who are well-versed in their area of substantive expertise.  For this reason, we set out to produce an accessible resource in plain English for appellate practitioners of all stripes—those who rarely handle appeals and those who know West Morgan and East Main streets cold.

We will update the blog frequently with the latest information from the appellate universe, including reviews of big decisions that will affect appellate practice going forward.  But this is more than a blog—it’s a hub for information and resources.  For example:

Just getting started? 

Check out the “Courts” link to get a feel for the two North Carolina state appellate courts in Raleigh and the federal appellate court in Richmond.  There you can learn about the structure of each bench and what an appeal looks like in each forum.

Big brief due? 

Click on the “Practice Guides” link above and peruse  the North Carolina Appellate Rules Committee’s Appellate Style Manual to be sure your brief follows all the Court’s rules and formats.

They filed a Petition for Writ of What? 

Every area of law has its own jargon, and appeals are no exception.  Stop by the Glossary to find plain English explanations of appeals lingo.

Election year? 

The Judges and Justices of the North Carolina Appellate courts are elected by we the people, but information about candidates can be hard to come by.  In even-numbered years, we will collect all the best voter information about judicial candidates for you to review before heading to the polls.

We hope you find this a treasure trove of useful information.  If you can think of something additional that would help you in your appellate practice, just give us a holler.

Matt LeerbergMatthew Nis Leerberg
Partner, Litigation
Raleigh, NC

919.755.8759 / E-mail