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 Certiorari
Petitions for the writ of certiorari are a fairly routine part of North Carolina appellate practice and procedure, but the Appellate Rules do not provide much guidance on what those
Continue Reading Certiorari Petitions in the Court of Appeals: From Ordinary to Extra-Ordinary
A writ of certiorari is a discretionary, extraordinary writ—and is therefore never granted as a matter of right. See, e.g., King v. Taylor, 188 N.C. 450, 451, 124
Continue Reading A New Kind of “Merit” Badge: The Petition for Writ of Certiorari
In Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prevents prosecutors in criminal cases from exercising
Continue Reading The ups and downs (and up again?) of a Batson challenge
Almost two years ago, 
I blogged about a relatively rare phenomenon: a published denial of a petition for rehearing. Back then, two recent Fourth Circuit cases had produced petitions for
Continue Reading Another Published Denial of Rehearing, Another 4th Circuit Case to the Supreme Court?
Update: In February 2021, the Supreme Court granted the defendant’s petition for discretion review.
Since 2015, this blog has frequently discussed whether the text of Appellate Rule 21 places restrictions
Continue Reading “They’re baaaaack!”– Disagreements Regarding Scope of Permissible Relief under Appellate Rule 21 and In re Civil Penalty
A few weeks ago, the North Carolina Court of Appeals in Connor v. Connor rejected an argument that a notice of appeal signed by a pro se litigant was defective
Continue Reading When Is a Deadline or Other Requirement for Filing a Notice of Appeal Jurisdictional? (State Edition)
Last week’s batch of opinions from the Court of Appeals includes a procedurally complicated case in which the court granted a writ of certiorari–only to dismiss a large portion of the appeal “as untimely and interlocutory.” The opinion shines light on several faulty presumptions that can trip up an appeal. Intrigued? Read on.
Continue Reading Writ of Certiorari Issued to Dismiss Appeal
The UNC School of Government recently released an updated manual on abuse, neglect, dependency, and termination of parental rights. The online version of the updated manual is located here.
Continue Reading School of Government Releases Updated Resources for 3.1 Cases– Plus a Biddix/Stubbs Update!