Archive for September, 2011

So you’re discouraged by a ruling that is just plain wrong, and you make a beeline for the appellate court.   The case law is all in your favor, your appellate brief hits it out of the park, and even the appellate court agrees that the trial court blew it.   But then … relief is denied.   How could this be?   The answer often lies in principles of appellate jurisdiction and/or the applicable standard of review.   A reminder of this came this morning when the 3rd DCA issued a ruling that refused to overturn a trial court order which allowed the plaintiff to plead punitive damages against the defendant cruise line.   Even though the 3rd DCA agreed with the cruise line that the proffered evidence was “legally insufficient to support a punitive damage claim,”  relief was nevertheless denied on the basis that an appellate court lacks jurisdiction to review the merits of such an order until the case is completely over.  The full text of the opinion can be read at http://www.3dca.flcourts.org/Opinions/3D11-1726.pdf.

Although many missteps in legal practice can be cured, when it comes to appellate jurisdiction don’t be so sure.  The dismissal of an appeal is not an uncommon event.  Many years ago, the warning bell rang when the 4th DCA dismissed an appeal because the notice of appeal had been filed in the court’s “night box” on day 30, rather than being filed in court that day.  (774 So. 2d 825)  Yesterday, the 4th DCA  dismissed an appeal where the notice of appeal referred to two non-final orders, but not the final judgment.  The appellant attempted to cure the problem by obtaining a revised final judgment and amending the notice of appeal, but that did not work.  The court’s opinion identifies and discusses a variety of appellate trap doors to watch out for, and it is good primer for anyone filing an appeal.  The full text of yesterday’s opinion can be found at http://www.4dca.org/opinions/Aug%202011/08-31-11/4D09-174.op.pdf.