Last Friday, the N.C. Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Section put on a fabulous CLE.  Leading judges and practitioners offered insights into recent developments in substantive and procedural appellate law, challenged us to think through the ethical implications that inhere in many appellate cases, and peeled back the curtain on how cases are managed by the clerks of court.

Beth and I were honored to present at the CLE on the topic of the hidden traps and statutory lacunae that threaten to derail even the most careful appellate lawyer. … Continue Reading

The new Appellate Practice Section of the NC Bar Association will present its first annual CLE on Friday, October 10, 2014, at the Bar Center in Cary.  The CLE, titled “Mass Appeal,” will include many wonderful speakers and interesting topics, and will be accessible to new appellate practitioners and seasoned lawyers alike.

As we describe it in the brochure:

• Choose among three specialized break-out sessions: a crash course in state appeals, a peek into special issues that arise in criminal appeals, and practical insights into executing on and enforcing judgments during appeals
• Understand the strategic choices made by counsel and judges in the course of an oral argument, by hearing from counsel and the panel before, during, and after a mock argument
• Earn ethics credit like never before, as two former jurists engage in a lively discussion of the ethical quandaries lurking in every appeal
• Gain insights into Fourth Circuit practice by joining in a conversation with Judge Albert Diaz, a federal prosecutor, and a federal public defender
• Peel back the curtain and glimpse the inner workings of the appellate courts, with the Clerks of Court as your guides
• Learn how to analyze that final question you face after losing an appeal–whether and how to seek review in the United States Supreme Court

For more information, see here. … Continue Reading

DRI, the Defense Research Institute, is hosting what promises to be a fantastic appellate advocacy seminar in Chicago in a few weeks, beginning on July 17.  My firm’s appellate practice group is proud to be a sponsor of the conference again this year, as we have been in the past.  There is always a decent contingent from North Carolina that makes the trek for these DRI programs because they are so valuable. … Continue Reading

Short on CLE hours for your appellate specialization, or looking for a good discussion on brief writing and oral argument tips?  The Mecklenburg County Bar is offering a nearly full-day CLE on these skills and more on February 13, 2014.

The program includes several knowledgeable speakers, including Judge Diaz of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, Justice Barbara Jackson of the Supreme Court of North Carolina, and friend-of-the-blog John Bowers, among others.… Continue Reading

Ours is a profession where we learn by doing.  Along that vein, consider attending the upcoming “Prevailing on Appeal” CLE offered by the NCADA Young Lawyers Committee at Campbell University School of Law in Raleigh on July 25, 2012. 

The CLE combines instruction in the morning with attendees paritcipating in moot court arguments for the remainder of the day.  The morning session includes lectures from our own L.… Continue Reading

One of the questions we often hear from trial lawyers is how, in the midst of all the things to worry about at trial, to structure your objections, motions, and filings to preserve errors for a possible later appeal.  There are a number of resources available to help answer these questions, including a thorough piece by our own Allison Van Laningham you can find here.… Continue Reading