The Supreme Court’s Technology Department has done it again. Quietly adding even more features to the appellate courts’ electronic filings site, www.ncappellatecourts.org. The filing site has long allowed attorneys and the...more
It’s not every day that the Court of Appeals spends almost 12 pages talking about the appellate rules, including why rules compliance is so important. But that’s exactly what the Court of Appeals did in Harney v. Harney. ...more
When you read about someone breaking into an unlocked door in rural North Carolina you may hear sighs about the death of the good old days. But leave the front door wide open all night and even the sweetest southern grandma...more
Civil lawyers love written notices of appeal. Have you ever heard a civil attorney say, “I wish I could orally notice an appeal”? Me neither. But the criminal trial bar overwhelmingly give oral notices of appeal in state...more
Long-time readers of this blog may remember the fun I’ve had finding photos reflecting the ups and downs of en banc rehearing in the Court of Appeals. The General Assembly first authorized en banc review in 2016, with the...more
Oral argument in the appellate courts typically last an hour, with 30 minutes allotted to each side to present arguments. But might a shorter oral argument period be more productive if the parties knew ahead of time the...more
Thirty years ago, Justice Scalia famously described the Supreme Court’s Lemon test as “some ghoul in a late-night horror movie that repeatedly sits up in its grave and shuffles abroad, after being repeatedly killed and...more
On Monday, Governor Cooper elevated Judge Allison Riggs from the Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, Judge Riggs and her appellate colleagues issued 24 opinions outside of the normal schedule. And now we hear...more
The Court of Appeals’ latest batch of opinions includes several reminders about the importance of proving that appellate jurisdiction is proper in an appellant’s opening brief. Not in a conclusory fashion. Not in the...more
Writer and futurist Alvin Toffler cautioned, “You’ve got to think about big things while you’re doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction.” Today’s batch of Court of Appeals opinions...more
The legal aftershocks of the COVID-19 pandemic will be surfacing for years to come. But for those waiting for pendent-appellate jurisdiction and Rule 54(b) sightings, a recent Court of Appeal opinion combines appellate...more
10/14/2022
/ Appellate Courts ,
Appellate Jurisdiction ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Fees ,
Government Lockdown ,
Rules of Civil Procedure ,
School Closures ,
Sovereign Immunity ,
Students ,
Universities
Over the years, John, Dan, and Gene’s signature stamps expended lots of ink signing orders “By order of the Court.” Meanwhile, the identity and votes of the judges who ruled on a particular petition have long been a...more
This blog post is a mishmash of news and updates.
—Remote Oral Argument in Harper v. Hall (N.C. Congressional Maps Case). After a Supreme Court remand, the trial court entered an order upholding North Carolina’s...more
I am pleased to report that the Supreme Court of North Carolina has selected Grant Buckner as its 17th Clerk of Court.
Grant is no stranger to the appellate courts. Early on in his career, he clerked for Judge (and later...more
As noted previously, the 2022 Appellate Rules amendments contemplate that the entire record on appeal should be filed electronically during a single e-filing session. Yet, when those amendments were first announced back in...more
Stories of mythical creatures have taken over this blog. First it was the summer 2021 unicorn where the Court of Appeals granted (and then withdrew) its first en banc review. And then it was the November 2021 Loch Ness...more
Social commentators have described our nation’s current labor market as the “Great Resignation.” Baby Boomers are retiring to spend more time with loved ones. Workers are leaving current employers for more flexible work...more
On Wednesday, October 13, the Supreme Court of North Carolina issued new amendments to the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure. The key changes, which apply to notices of appeal filed on or after 1 January 2022, are...more
10/15/2021
/ Appellate Courts ,
Court Records ,
E-Filing ,
Ex Parte ,
Filing Requirements ,
NC Supreme Court ,
Notifications ,
Oral Argument ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Transcripts ,
Trial Exhibits ,
Tribunals
A month ago, I excitedly reported that the North Carolina Court of Appeals had granted its first motion for rehearing en banc. Turns out that the en banc party invitations were for naught.
In a special order entered...more
Friday afternoon, my email and text message notification systems were singing. Why? For the first time since December 2016 when the Court of Appeals received en banc review authority, an order allowing en banc rehearing was...more
As reported previously, Dan Horne is retiring as Clerk of the Court of Appeals at the end of the month. His successor will be Eugene “Gene” Soar, who has served as Staff Attorney for the Clerk of the Court of Appeals since...more
In April 2017, the General Assembly moved primary (i.e., initial) appellate jurisdiction in termination of parental rights appeals from the Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court. That change (which went into effect in...more
In Dicesare v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority, 2021 NCBC Order 10 (Apr. 6, 2021), the North Carolina Business Court determined that a trial court loses jurisdiction to rule on a pending Civil Rule 60(b)(6) motion...more
Under Appellate Rule 10, the general rule is that appellate courts only decide issues properly raised, argued, and decided in the trial tribunal. But exceptions to this general rule exist for issues considered so fundamental...more
The recent opinion of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in M.E. v. T.J., No. COA18-1045 has more twists than a Chubby Checker look-alike contest. The opinion is long and the facts and procedure are somewhat convoluted, but...more