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Articles Posted in Appellate

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What is an Interlocutory Order?

If you have an active or pending family law case, you have likely heard many terms that you’re not familiar with. The complexity of North Carolina laws can make family law proceedings difficult to navigate, especially when you aren’t fluent in legalese. If your case has already been through a…

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Appellate Practice Clarification

AMAN V. NICHOLSON, 2023-NCCOA-________ (2023).  Facts:  Plaintiff and Defendant are parents of a minor child. They separated in fall of 2019. Plaintiff filed for custody, and a temporary order was entered. The temporary order granted joint legal custody (decision making) and primary physical custody to Plaintiff, visitation to Defendant. It…

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Sanctions for Bad Appeals

Shebalin v. Shebalin, 2022-NCCOA-410. Facts: This appeal arose from the appointment of a parenting coordinator. Parenting coordinators are often appointed to child custody cases when the parents absolutely cannot get along. Plaintiff and Defendant had a minor child together who was at the center of their custody dispute. The trial…

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NC Rules of Appellate Procedure Amended

https://www.nccourts.gov/news/tag/general-news/supreme-court-amends-the-rules-of-appellate-procedure On October 13, 2021, the North Carolina Supreme Court adopted amendments to the Rules of Appellate Procedure. These changes will be in effect for appeals taken on or after January 1, 2022. A few of these amendments were directly caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, and some were accelerated…

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Identifying Harassment

NC Court of Appeals (No. COA20-545)   Grace DiPrima (“Plaintiff”) and Clifton Benjamin Vann, V (“Defendant”) were the best of friends.  Their friendship began in the third grade, and the two stayed friends throughout grade school and beyond.  Plaintiff and Defendant attended The Fletcher School (“Fletcher”), an educational institution for…

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How to Style Your Appeal, Part 3

Appeals are very technical. In the last blog, we covered the beginning sections of an appellate brief. There is opportunity to fashion a primer for argument with the presentation of facts and issues. However, be forewarned: omissions of bad facts and argumentative spin on the facts is improper and will…

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How to Style Your Appeal, Part 2

Appeals are very technical. Last time, we covered the technicalities in a Record on Appeal. Now we address the appellate brief. The Brief is where the case is won or lost. It contains the arguments of counsel on why the appellate court should overturn the court below. As one can…

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How to Style Your Appeal, Part I

Appeals are very technical. A filing with the Court of Appeals can happen after a final judgment, or as an interlocutory appeal—meaning before the final judgment. But in order for the Court of Appeals to properly hear your case, you have to provide them with all the facts. The Court…

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What is an Amicus Brief?

Despite the name, a final judgment from a trial court is not always the end of a case. Appeal of the trial court judgment is often the next step in the timeline of a case. On appeal, typically, the Courts of Appeal are only restricted to the issues and factual…

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Ignorance Is Not Bliss! : Innocent Spouse Relief

Neitzer v. Comm’r, T.C. Memo. 2018156, 2018 WL 4519997 (2018) (a) Facts: Husband owned and operated two businesses. The wife, who was trained as a nurse, was totally disabled after a series of spine and hip surgeries. Her income came primarily from disability benefits. The couple separated in 2010. Their…

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