Much ink has been spilled exploring the porous jurisdictional border between the trial division and the appellate division. A recent opinion from the Court of Appeals addresses this issue again.
Continue Reading Better Late Than Never? Not Always
Writer and futurist Alvin Toffler cautioned, “You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction.” Today’s
Continue Reading Avoiding Big Problems with Small Details: Protecting Sensitive Information and Including the “Littlest Big” Detail With Notices of Appeal
Those who have known me for any length of time know that for more than a decade I have really, really wanted the Supreme Court to give appellate practitioners clarification
Continue Reading Like Sands Through the Hourglass: Supreme Court Revises Transcript-Related Rules
Last 
week, the Court of Appeals returned to a general question that this blog has addressed before: When is a Notice of Appeal Filing Deadline or Requirement Jurisdictional? In this
Continue Reading Can the Cart (Appeal) Go Before the Horse (Entry of Order Being Appealed)?
Unlike in federal court, judges in North Carolina’s state courts often invite counsel for the prevailing party to draft a proposed order on the court’s ruling. Sometimes the judge will
Continue Reading Appellate Review of Trial Court Reasoning
Last month, Beth blogged about an opinion from the Court of Appeals dismissing an appeal for eight appellate rules violations. This month, the Court withdrew its opinion, issued a new
Continue Reading After Further Review, the Ruling on the Field Stands
You already know that the Supreme Court adopted numerous amendments to the Rules of Appellate Procedure at the end of 2018. However, some of the most significant changes are occurring
Continue Reading Appellate Rules Amendments Bring Modifications to E-filing System
Practitioners: Say goodbye to goldenrod printed records (and COA briefs with colorful covers). As I previously predicted, both appellate clerks will no longer be mailing printed records to the
Continue Reading Fire Sale: Goldenrod Yellow Paper
It is beginning to feel like a bi-annual holiday tradition between me and our blog readers: another rule-update summary. Yesterday afternoon, the Supreme Court issued its latest order amending the
Continue Reading Supreme Court Issues Order Amending the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure: 2018 Holiday Edition
Look around your office. There’s paper everywhere, right? Your office is a fire hazard.
How can you fix that problem? You should take two steps: (1) throw all that stuff
Continue Reading Court of Appeals Takes Baby Steps Toward Paperless Future