civ pro appeals ol

8/13/2019 Civ Pro Appeals OL

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/civ-pro-appeals-ol 1/6

LAST LS SESSION BEFORE FINAL REVIEW SESSION:Dec. 7th 12pm - 1pmRm 202

APPEALS

- not a retrial; no witnesses testify in person- judges consider only those issues raised by the appealing party- appeals can be taken when court disposes in full of all the final relief sought by

all the parties

RULEFirst Step in whether a person can appeal: is it final judgment? 28 USC Sect. 1291: the court of appeals shall have jurisdiction from all final

decisions of the district courts of the USo finality principle: _______________________o final judgment: _________________________

ie:

5 EXCEPTIONS to the Rule: 1. Judgment on Multiple Claims 54(b)(2): when an action presents more than

one claim for relief or when multiple parties are involved, the court may direct

entry of a f inal judgm ent as to o ne or m ore, but fewer than al l, claims or

parties only if the court expressly determines that there is no just reason fordelay.

o that is a party can appeal an issue or claim that is part of a cause of actionconsisting of multiple claims before the final judgment on all of theissues/claims is rendered, as long there has been a final judgment enteredon that particular issue on appeal

2. Injunctions 28 USC Sect. 1292(a)(1): allows an interlocutory appeal of districtcourt orders “granting, continuing, modifying, refusing or dissolving injunctions, orrefusing to dissolve or modify injunctions”

o that is a party can appeal an injunction (= the court ordering a party to dosomething or stop doing something) before final judgment is rendered inthe case

3. Certified Interlocutory Appeals 28 U.S.C. Sect. 1292(b)(1): allows districtcourt to enter an order/interlocutory appeal if three requirements are satisfied:

1. Involves a controlling question of law2. On which there is substantial ground for difference of opinion3. From which an immediate appeal may materially advance the ultimatetermination of the litigation



o if a party meets all 3 requirements, which is rare, then the court will grant

the interlocutory appeal = falling betw. the beginning & end of the lawsuit

Two prong test for an interlocutory appeal to be heard (1292b):

1.2.

4. Writ of Mandamus:o very high standard to meet: to grant the writ the trial judge must have

exceeded his authorityo a party files a petition for a writ of mandamus before the trial proceeds

5. Collateral Order Doctrine:o allows appeals from interlocutory rulings so long as those rulings

conclusively decide an issue separate from the merits of the case and

would be effectively unreviewable after final judgmento triggered by irreparable circumstance = something the moving party

cannot get back (if the party were to wait until final judgment to appeal)o District Court allows an interlocutory appeal and enters an order if it:

1. Conclusively determines the disputed question 2. Resolves an important issue completely separate from the merits

of the action 3. Is effectively unreviewable on appeal from a final judgment 4. Important unsettled question of controlling law

STANDARD Who has the right to appeal a trial court’s decision? (standing to appeal)

o Rule: ______________________

What errors of a trial court are reviewable? (reviewabil i ty of error)

o Rule: only prejudicial (harmful) errors of the trial court that made adifference (or probably did) to the outcome of the case and werepreserved (raised/objected to) by appellant in the trial court

You will learn in evidence class that you must make certainobjections during trial or motions hearings in order to preserve theright to appeal.

Also you will learn in evidence class that the court will not reverse adistrict court’s ruling/jury’s verdict if the error was harmless (whichoften times is the case)

o judicial error + reviewable (prejudicial and preserved)

When can an appeal be taken? (appellate jurisdiction: appealabi l i ty )o Fed. Rules of Appellate Procedure Rule 4.

File within 30 days of final judgment designating what is beingappealed



Interlocutory Appeals

o Advantages: Efficiency (but a lot of uncertainty) avoid prejudice- irreparable harm if you wait

o Disadvantages: Delay congestion- wasting the court’s time; greater costs

STANDARD OF REVIEWHow much scrutiny (deference) will an appellate court apply to a trial court’sdecision? (standard of review on appeal)

for findings of fact “clearly erroneous” standard o mere disagreement is not enougho great deference to lower court- only reverse if obvious error

for rulings of law

“de novo” standard o mere difference is sufficiento court doesn’t owe any deference to the lower court o evaluate question from a clean slate, new perspective

for mixed questions (applications of law to fact) “de novo” standard (facts trigger the law- and then apply that law to the facts)

o mere disagreement is sufficiento clean slate

for discretionary decisions (vast majority) “abuse of discretion” o great deference to the lower courto only reverse if abuse of discretion (high standard to meet)

ex: FRCP 11 sanctions; hearsay/admissibility of certain evidenceo standard higher than mere disagreement w/ lower court- must show abuse

*** If on appeal you are the appellant arguing for a reversal of the lower court’s decision,you would want to argue ________ standard of review. WHY? _______________ ***



CASE In re Recticel Foam Corp.: (1st Cir. 1988)

o Rule: 28 USC 1291o Facts/Procedure:

o Holding:

o Reasoning: 1. 2. 3.



HYPOs. After an auto accident, Patty sues Dean Corp., the manufacturer of the car, bringingclaims of strict product liability, breach of warranty, and negligence. Patty is seeking atotal of $1 million in compensatory damages.

1. Dean brings a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss all three of Patty’s claims. Themotion is denied in its entirety. Is this a final judgment from which Dean may takean immediate appeal?

2. Suppose instead that the court grants Dean’s motion in its entirety but grantsPatty leave to amend her complaint. Is this a final judgment from which Deanmay take an immediate appeal?

3. Same facts as #2. Suppose Patty amends her complaint and Dean brings a

second Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss. This time the court grants the motion inpart and denies it in part, dismissing Patty’s breach of warranty and negligenceclaims with prejudice but upholding Patty’s strict product liability claim as properlypleaded. Is this a final judgment from which Dean may take an immediateappeal? Is it a final judgment from which Patty may take an immediate appeal?

4. During discovery in the case, Patty requests production of certain designdocuments that Dean claims contain highly sensitive trade secrets. Dean movesfor a protective order, which the court denies, thus ordering Dean to turn over thedocuments. Dean asks the court to reconsider, but the court refuses. The lawregarding whether such documents must be disclosed is unsettled. Dean wantsto take an immediate interlocutory appeal of the court’s ruling. What exception tothe final judgment rule could Dean use?

5. Patty’s strict product liability claim goes to a jury trial. The jury renders a verdictfinding Dean liable for product liability but awarding only $500,000 in damages toPatty. The court then enters a final judgment on this verdict. Who may appeal?

6. Dean takes an appeal of the judgment for Patty on the jury verdict. Whatstandard of review (de novo, clearly erroneous, or abuse of discretion) will theCourt of Appeals apply to each of the following issues:

a. Whether the district court gave erroneous instructions to the jury on thelaw of strict product liability?



b. Whether the district court improperly modified its scheduling order to allowmore time for Pablo to take depositions of Daimler employees?

c. Whether the jury improperly found that the design of the car in question

was defective?

civ pro appeals ol

Documents