The record
What the court of appeal reads, and what it never sees
An appeal isn't a second trial. The judges read what was said and filed below, and nothing else. Here's what that record holds and how to get a copy.
Oriana Matsuura6 min read
Appeals and post-conviction, San Diego
We read the record your trial left behind
Civil and criminal appeals, habeas petitions and a second chair for trial lawyers, from three appellate lawyers downtown. The time to file a notice of appeal is short, so start with the date your judgment was entered.
Eight-minute talk
What a court of appeal reads, and what it won't
Oriana walks through the record on appeal: the transcript, the exhibits, the objections made at trial. She explains why new evidence almost never gets in, and what that means for the first call. Rather read? It's written up as a guide.
Oriana Matsuura on what the record on appeal holds
Talk by Oriana Matsuura, founding partner
Guides
Three reads for the weeks after a verdict
Plain-language notes from the three of us. Each one ends with what to do next.
Criminal appealsHarmless error: when a mistake at trial isn't enough
Courts reverse for errors that changed the result, not for every error. How we test a mistake against the rest of the record before we recommend an appeal.
Ignacio Ibarguen7 min read
ProcessFrom notice of appeal to decision, step by step
The filings, the waiting and the rare oral argument, in the order they come. A map for the year ahead.
Lior Pinheiro4 min read
Practice
Four ways in, after the jury goes home
Most of our work begins with a judgment someone wants changed or kept. Some begins before the verdict.
Civil appeals
Appealing a judgment after a jury or bench trial, or defending one you won.
Civil appealsCriminal appeals
Direct appeals from a conviction or a sentence, in state and federal court.
Criminal appealsPost-conviction
Habeas petitions and motions after the appeal is over, when something outside the record matters.
Post-convictionFor trial lawyers
Jury instructions, post-trial motions and writs, with an appellate lawyer at your table.
Trial lawyer help
Send the date your judgment was entered
One date and a line about the case is enough to start. We reply with the deadline we read from it and whether the case fits our work, before anyone talks about fees.