Win or lose, a case rarely ends at the trial court. Parties benefit by having an appellate specialist handle the case’s continuation at the appellate level. At the appellate court, the procedural rules are different, the audience is different, the strategy is different, the perspectives are different, and the required skillset is different. I have devoted my entire career to appellate practice and trial support, beginning with a two-year appellate clerkship at the Florida Supreme Court and then 17 years and counting in private practice, focusing on all areas of appellate practice in state and federal courts.
As your appellate counsel, I can evaluate your case and provide a realistic assessment of the issues, create strategies to improve your chances of success, and focus the issues in a manner persuasive to an appellate court. This is done at any stage of the appellate proceeding, beginning with extraordinary writ proceedings and interlocutory appeals from nonfinal orders prior to trial to appeals from final judgments after trial. After an adverse verdict, I have unique experience on issues relating to supersedeas bonds and ensuring that a judgment is not prematurely executed.
I stay up to date on developments in the substantive law, as well as new developments on procedural and evidentiary issues. I know how to dive into a record with fresh eyes and find the needle in a haystack that could win the appeal, how to focus on crafting arguments in a clear and succinct manner, how to see argument that may not be readily apparent to the trial lawyer who has lived with the case often for years, and present clear and persuasive oral arguments.