Less than a year ago, we blogged on a CLE presentation by Court of Appeals Judge Rich Dietz on typography in appellate briefs. At the time, Judge Dietz urged appellate
Continue Reading Typography in Appellate Briefs: Courier Fans, It Is Time to Make the Switch of the Century
This morning, my colleague Whit Pierce forwarded me a legal writing tip from Bryan A. Garner, a well known American lawyer and lexicographer who has authored a number of
Continue Reading What’s in a Name? Compliance with a Rule Perhaps.
No tattling allowed if someone buys scalped tickets to attend this event. For the first time since the Civil War era, the Supreme Court of North Carolina is preparing a
Continue Reading Westward Bound: Supreme Court to Hold Two Sessions of Court in Morganton (Psst! A Showdown on an Important Issue of Appellate Procedure Could Occur)
When you are waiting on an decision from the North Carolina Court of Appeals, if you are like me, you anxiously scour the new opinions every other Tuesday morning. And
Continue Reading Give The Court Notice Of Additional Authority, But Not Much More
I can’t pass up the opportunity to blog about an appellate case titled Don’t Do It, [Sic] Empire, LLC v. Tenntex, COA 15-938 (Mar. 1, 2016) ([sic] in original)—especially
Continue Reading Rule 9(b)(5) Supplements and Issues Raised for the First Time On Appeal: Don’t Do It!
Your introductory research and writing class probably taught you that constitutions, statutes, and binding caselaw are primary authority. Those should be the basis of any appellate brief.
But is it
Continue Reading To Cite or Not to Cite–That Is the Question
The September 2015 ABA Journal has an interesting article by Bryan Garner on headings in appellate briefs. Garner makes a case for why the table of contents is one of
Continue Reading Is the Table of Contents the Most Important Component of a Brief?
[box] ♪♪ If there is something strange,
In your neighborhood,
Who you gonna call?
. . .
If there’s something weird
And it don’t look good,
Who you gonna call?
In March, we blogged about a chart summarizing post-Dogwood opinions involving appellate rules violations. Drew and Carrie may be adding another entry to their chart. In an opinion authored
Continue Reading Citation to Legal Authority: What is Required to Comply with Appellate Rule 28(a)?
The Scherer household recently added a new baby, and while I have been gushing about how wonderful he is, the Court of Appeals has been displaying similar affection for its
Continue Reading Briefing Extensions Now Automatic for Cases that Participate in Appellate Mediation Program