Last year, my colleague Kip Nelson warned about the risks of failing to provide a fulsome “statement of the grounds for appellate review” in an appellant’s brief, as required by
Continue Reading Proving Appellate Jurisdiction: Do Not Put Off Until Tomorrow What You Can Do Today
Holidays, snowstorms, vacations, workloads—mixed in with the winter blahs—have resulted in us getting a little behind on our blogging duties. The appellate courts, however, have not suffered from the same
Continue Reading Ketchup, Catsup, Catch-Up: A Hodgepodge Of Important Appellate Decisions We Were Behind In Sharing
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)?
Last week the North Carolina Court of Appeals dismissed an appeal based on what it described as “substantial noncompliance” with the appellate rules. The dismissal in Smith v. North Carolina
Continue Reading Dismissal After Diligent (but Failed) Attempt to Get Transcript
“Brevity is appreciated.” “A short brief can be very effective.” How many times have you heard appellate judges make statements like this about appellate briefs? While I can most certainly
Continue Reading Appellate Brief Brevity and Success On Appeal?
Confession: until today, I did not realize there was a divide. When making the possessive of a singular noun ending in s, I always added the extra s after
Continue Reading Jones’s Punctuation Confession
When it comes to briefing, we know we should be accurate, clear, and concise (and persuasive, of course). For many of us, brevity is the real challenge—a challenge word limitations
Continue Reading A Potential Pitfall of Incorporating by Reference
While reading through the latest batch of opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals, I was struck (again) by how often appellate cases are not decided on the merits
Continue Reading Appellate Procedure and Preservation of Errors: They Matter!
I relish the warmth of a freshly printed brief and the texture of the bond paper on which it is printed. But your audience–an appellate judge–may well be reading your
Continue Reading Is Your Brief As Beautiful On An iPad As It Is On Paper?
The North Carolina Court of Appeals decision in Hammond v. Saini arises from a horrific set of facts. Plaintiff underwent a surgical procedure to remove a potentially cancerous growth from
Continue Reading Medical Review and Attorney Privilege Issues are Immediately Reviewable, But Other Discovery Issues Are Generally Not