appeal arrowYes, family law appellate lawyers handle appeals to the Texas court of appeals or the Texas Supreme Court. We read records, write briefs, and make oral arguments.  We research rules and analyze case opinions. But, adding an appellate lawyer to your trial team can be beneficial long before filing a notice of appeal.

Pleadings

Early in the case, the appellate lawyer can assist with complex pleading issues.  If jurisdiction is contested, the appellate lawyer can prepare and present the plea to the jurisdiction or special appearance and get the legal issues ready for mandamus (family law cases) or interlocutory appeal (civil cases). The appellate lawyer can draft special exceptions and craft special pleadings for complex claims or defenses.

Complex Legal Issues

An appellate lawyer can be a member of the family law trial team, much the same as an expert witness or jury consultant. As a second chair lawyer in the case, the appellate lawyer can take charge of complex legal issues so the trial lawyer can focus on presenting the factual issues.  For example, in a challenge to a premarital agreement, the appellate lawyer can handle the legal research and briefing on the basis for the challenge, coordinate the evidence needed to meet the elements of the claim, and draft the pleadings on the issue.

Dispositive Pre-trial Motions

Summary judgments, even if unsuccessful, can help prepare the trial lawyer to make a motion for directed verdict at trial or raise a legal sufficiency point on appeal. A no-evidence motion for summary judgment can be used strategically to either eliminate unmeritorious claims prior to trial, or at a minimum get an idea before trial of the evidence and legal theories the other side may rely upon to prove the claim. So, an appellate lawyer can be especially beneficial in preparing summary judgments prior to trial to eliminate (or defend against elimination of) some tenuous claims. In a jury trial case, the appellate lawyer can file Rule 248 motions seeking determination of the trial court’s rulings on matters of law.

Pretrial Appeals

When a party suffers a negative ruling on a pretrial matter, such as discovery, mandamus may be a viable alternative. Or, if the trial court appoints a receiver over the marital estate, interlocutory appeal will be required to avoid waiver of error. Interlocutory appeals have accelerated deadlines to watch out for. An appellate lawyer can be useful for seeking redress in the appellate courts of pretrial rulings either by mandamus or interlocutory appeal, as appropriate.

Trial

Having an appellate lawyer sit second chair at trial can ease the pressure on the trial lawyer from focusing on preservation of error issues to concentrating on presentation of the factual issues.  A motion can be made at the beginning of the trial to allow the appellate lawyer to handle all objections. (The worst scenario for a trial lawyer is to hear from an appellate judge that he or she waived error by failing to make the right or timely objections!) The appellate lawyer can draft and present motions for directed verdict, preserving error on the sufficiency of the evidence arguments for appeal. In a jury trial, the appellate lawyer can present and monitor issues pertaining to limine and jury charge. Recently, the Texas Supreme Court has moved away from broad form submission and toward granulated charge questions. Having an appellate lawyer handle the charge objections and requests for submission can ease the trial lawyer’s burden.

Post-trial

After trial is over, an appellate lawyer can be beneficial to ensure that requests for findings are timely filed, especially with the special deadlines for such findings in many family law cases. The appellate lawyer can handle sufficiency objections to the trial court’s ruling and proposed judgment, or objections to the jury’s verdict. Motions for new trial and other post-judgment motions are also an area of an appellate lawyer’s expertise. Preparing the issues for direct appeal after the entry of judgment, and preserving the deadlines, can be essential to presenting the case for appeal, and directly related to the appellate lawyer’s purpose.

 

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Photo of Michelle O'Neil Michelle O'Neil

Michelle May O’Neil has 30+ years’ experience representing small business owners, professionals, and individuals in litigation related to family law matters such as divorce, child custody, and complex property division. Described by one lawyer as “a lethal combination of sweet-and-salty”, Ms. O’Neil exudes…

Michelle May O’Neil has 30+ years’ experience representing small business owners, professionals, and individuals in litigation related to family law matters such as divorce, child custody, and complex property division. Described by one lawyer as “a lethal combination of sweet-and-salty”, Ms. O’Neil exudes genuine compassion for her client’s difficulties, yet she can be relentless when in pursuit of a client’s goals. One judge said of Ms. O’Neil, “She cannot be out-gunned, out-briefed, or out-lawyered!”

Family Law Specialist

Ms. O’Neil became a board-certified family law specialist by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in 1997 and has maintained her certification since that time. While representing clients in litigation before the trial court is an important part of her practice, Ms. O’Neil also handles appellate matters in the trial court, courts of appeals and Texas Supreme Court. Lawyers frequently consult with Ms. O’Neil on their litigation cases about specialized legal issues requiring particularized attention both at the trial court and appellate levels. This gives her a unique perspective and depth of perception that benefits both her litigation and appellate clients.

Top Lawyers in Texas and America

Ms. O’Neil has been named to the list of Texas SuperLawyers for many years, a peer-voted honor given to only about 5% of the lawyers in the state of Texas. Ms. O’Neil received the special honor of being named by Texas SuperLawyers as one of the Top 50 Women Lawyers in Texas, Top 100 Lawyers in Texas, and Top 100 Lawyers in DFW for multiple years. She was named one of the Best Lawyers in America and received an “A-V” peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directories for the highest quality legal ability and ethical standards.

Author and Speaker

A noted author, Ms. O’Neil released her second book Basics of Texas Divorce Law in November 2010, with a second edition released in 2013, and a third edition expected in 2015.  Her first book, All About Texas Law and Kids, was published in September 2009 by Texas Lawyer Press. In 2012, Ms. O’Neil co-authored the booklets What You Need To Know About Common Law Marriage In Texas and Social Study Evaluations.  The State Bar of Texas and other providers of continuing education for attorneys frequently enlist Ms. O’Neil to provide instruction to attorneys on topics of her expertise in the family law arena.