Appellate Practice Primer
I recently partnered with the Utah State Bar Young Lawyers Division to present a 1-hour continuing legal education (CLE) course on appellate practice entitled Things Not to Learn the Hard Way—A Primer on Appellate Procedure. This post is an introduction to the CLE and includes the course materials below.
The course was premised on the idea that a basic understanding of appellate procedure is essential to most civil and criminal practitioners, and often those practicing in other fields as well. Attorneys need to be able to advise clients on their appellate rights, for example, even if the attorney has no intention of actually litigating an appeal. Lawyers also need to avoid common appellate pitfalls, many of which accrue during litigation long before an appeal is even possible.
To that end, I designed the CLE to be of interest to both new attorneys and experienced attorneys who do not often handle appeals. It covers the basic nuts and bolts of appellate practice in Utah, with an eye towards the procedure up until the merits briefing phase of the appeal. I don’t address the “art” of appeals, like how to select issues or how to write persuasive briefs, nor do I address federal practice.
The slide deck I used is below, along with a recording of the presentation. The information therein is of general applicability but, as always in the law, your situation may be different or a narrow exception may apply. For that reason, I recommend that you consult with an experienced appellate practitioner about the specifics of your case.