Federal Civil Appeals: A Comprehensive Guide

64 questions on federal civil appeals, answered and cited by the UpLaw editorial team.

• Are there any safety valves for a missed appeal deadline?
• Are there strategic reasons to file a rehearing petition?
• Can a judge extend the appeal deadline?
• Can I appeal an injunction ruling immediately?
• Can I appeal the denial of my summary judgment motion after losing at trial?
• Can I be sanctioned for filing a frivolous appeal?
• Can I cite an unpublished federal appellate decision?
• Can I dismiss my remaining claims to create an appealable judgment?
• Can I wait for the attorney's fee ruling before appealing the merits?
• Do I need to file an amended notice of appeal after a post-judgment motion is denied?
• Do most federal civil appeals get oral argument?
• How are arbitration-related orders appealed?
• How are mixed questions of law and fact reviewed?
• How can an appellant win under abuse of discretion review?
• How does a section 1292(b) interlocutory appeal work?
• How does substantial evidence review of a jury verdict work?
• How do you position a case for certiorari?
• How do you preserve an evidentiary ruling for appeal?
• How do you prove that an error was harmful?
• How do you win an appeal from a bench trial?
• How do you write a good statement of the issues?
• How should an appellate appendix be built?
• How should the argument section of an appellate brief be structured?
• How should the statement of the case be written?
• Is a federal appeal a second trial?
• Is plain error review realistically available in civil appeals?
• What actually works at oral argument?
• What are the four standards of appellate review?
• What are the grounds for rehearing en banc?
• What are the key takeaways for federal civil appeals?
• What are the odds of Supreme Court review, and what gets granted?
• What are the ways a party waives an issue on appeal?
• What dispositions can a court of appeals issue?
• What does clear error review actually require?
• What does it take to preserve an issue for appeal?
• What happens if I file a post-judgment motion two days late?
• What happens to the district court's authority when a notice of appeal is filed?
• What is a reply brief for?
• What is harmless error and who bears the burden?
• What is Rule 54(b) certification and when does it work?
• What is the collateral order doctrine?
• What is the deadline for filing a notice of appeal?
• What is the difference between forfeiture and waiver on appeal?
• What is the final judgment rule?
• What is the mandate and why does it matter?
• What is the mandate rule and how far does it reach?
• What is the record on appeal?
• What is the Rule 50(b) sufficiency trap?
• What is the separate document rule and the 150-day backstop?
• What is the transcript trap in Rule 10(b)?
• What is the trap in Rule 54(b) certification?
• What must a notice of appeal contain?
• What rulings are reviewed for abuse of discretion?
• What should appellate counsel do in the first weeks after a judgment?
• What structural advantage does the appellee have?
• When does an appellee need to file a cross-appeal?
• When is a petition for panel rehearing worth filing?
• When is mandamus available in a civil appeal?
• Which common orders are NOT appealable as final judgments?
• Which orders qualify as collateral orders and which do not?
• Which post-judgment motions toll the appeal deadline?
• Who pays costs and attorney's fees on appeal?
• Why is appellate review structured with so many filters?
• Why is the standard of review the most important part of an appeal?