Archive for December, 2011

So you’ve just lost your case and you make a beeline for the appellate court in order to rectify the situation.  If you’re not careful, however, you can make things worse for yourself.   Not only might you lose the appeal, but you might be subject to sanctions too.   In an opinion issued just a few short days before Christmas, the 4th DCA effectively upheld the foreclosure of a homeowner’s property, then admonished her counsel for pursuing the appeal.   See http://www.4dca.org/opinions/Dec%202011/12-21-11/4D11-457.op.pdf.   The Court reminded counsel of “their ethical obligation to know the legal precedent of this Court and to base their legal arguments on that precedent,” and then reaffirmed its judicial authority to impose sanctions on a party who pursues an appeal that is “devoid of merit both on the facts and the law….”   The message:  Tread carefully.

Pursuing an appeal can be a tricky matter even when an appellate issue may appear to be a “slam dunk” winner.   Case in point:  The Fourth District was recently asked to review a trial court order denying the appellant’s motion for summary judgment.  Relying on out-of-state decisions, the Court ruled that the issue was moot and thus not subject to appellate review.  According to the Court, once a trial is held and judgment is entered, it is “too late” to review a pre-trial order denying a motion for summary judgment.  The full text of the opinion can be found at http://www.4dca.org/opinions/Nov%202011/11-16-11/4D10-3086.op.pdf.