Appeals

An appeal may only be filed after the trial court judge issues the final order in your case. A final order is an order that resolves all of the issues raised in the trial court. What this means in family law cases is that, in most cases, a party may not appeal a temporary order or an interim order to the Court of Appeals.

An appeal is the opportunity for the appellate court to review the record of the trial court, and to determine whether the trial court made certain errors. Not all errors are reviewable by an appellate court. For example, an appellate court is not able to second-guess the trial court’s determination of whether someone was truthful, or the trial court’s determination that one party was more believable than the other.  Instead, the appellate court may only review whether the trial court misinterpreted or misapplied the law.

After receiving your final order in your family law case, it is important that you discuss with your attorney whether you have grounds for an appeal, and whether it makes sense to file an appeal. Many factors will need to be considered, including the cost involved. The cost of an appeal varies dramatically from case to case, depending upon the number of issues appealed, the complexity of the issues appealed, the length of the trial court’s record and the hearing transcript. The experienced attorneys at the Law Office of Patricia G. Cartwright, P.C. are well equipped to help you with this analysis, and to handle your appellate case.