The appeals process can be a complex and lengthy legal process. It involves asking a higher court to review the lower court’s verdict and determine if there were any legal errors made during the initial trial that could have impacted the outcome of the case.
To start the appeals process, the defendant must file a notice of appeal within a specific timeframe (usually 30 days) of the lower court’s judgment. This notice secures the right to appeal and initiates the process of assembling the trial record, which includes all the relevant documents, transcripts, and exhibits from the initial trial. This record is important because it provides the appellate court with a complete understanding of the events that took place during the trial.
Once the trial record has been assembled, the defendant’s lawyer will review it and identify any potential errors that occurred during the trial that may have impacted the verdict. Common grounds for appeal may include: