APPEALS

In New York State, unlike almost all other states, the Supreme Court is a trial Court. Up from the Supreme Court is the Appellate Division. There are four Appellate Divisions in New York State which are divided into four separate departments depending solely on their geographic location. Up from the Appellate Divisions is the Court of Appeals which is the highest Court in New York State.

All law suits filed in Supreme Court are given an index number and almost all are eventually assigned to a particular Judge before any trial. After all discovery is completed, the case is placed upon a general trial calendar. If a jury is demanded, the lawyers for all parties will select a jury. 

After jury selection, or if no jury was demanded, a new trial judge will then be assigned to your case for the entire trial. While the trial judge is present to make sure the law is properly applied to all phases of the trial, sometimes, like us all, the trial judge will make a mistake(s) in applying the law or otherwise adversely affect the final outcome of the trial. This is exactly why there are appeal Courts. 

The mistakes and errors of  a Judge are not limited to just a trial. A Judge may also commit make mistakes while deciding motions or holding a hearing. The aggrieved party may be able to appeal those mistakes to a higher Court.

The grounds for an appeal from the Supreme Court to the Appellate Divisions or from the Appellate Divisions to the Court of Appeals are too numerous and case specific to cover on a simple webpage.

What you do need to know is that there are very strict time frames which must be complied with to file an appeal in your case. Once the record on appeal and the briefs are filed, there will usually be an oral argument before the Appeals Court. Usually this is attended by the lawyer but you can attend too if you desire. The time frame from the oral argument to the final decision varies in each Appeal Court.

Call Mr. Zahn right now if you or a loved one has had a recent case involving lawyer Malpractice, Medical Malpractice, a Serious Injury because of an accident, the Wrongful Death of a loved and you want to appeal that case because of errors or mistakes. By all means do not wait until it is too late! 

 
The materials contained in this website are for information purposes only and not

meant to be, and should not be construed by you, as legal advice. Viewing  this website is not intended to nor does it create any attorney-client  relationship. Our practice and all information on this website is limited to the laws of the State of New York.

 ***Mr. Zahn has recently been admitted to practice law in the State of Vermont. What is stated above only applies to the laws of the State of New York. 

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