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An Inside Look at the Arkansas Court of Appeals

Join Judge Mike Murphy and his law clerks, Lindsay Harper and Josie Richardson, for an intriguing glimpse into the life of an appeal. Learn about filing notices of appeal, navigating post-trial motions, the role of clerks, judges' expectations, oral arguments, motion proceedings, petitions for rehearing and review, and tips for writing better briefs. Discover the inner workings of the Arkansas Court of Appeals.

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An Inside Look at the Arkansas Court of Appeals

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  1. An Inside Look at the Arkansas Court of Appeals With Judge Mike Murphy and Lindsay Harper and Josie Richardson, Law Clerks

  2. The Life of an Appeal • File your notice of appeal. File early and file often. (That is, file amended notices of appeal if you need to, better safe than sorry) • If you have posttrial motions, stay aware of the “deemed denied” quagmire (ARCP 50, 52, 59) ( Ark. R. App. P.—Civ. 4) • File your record. • Briefs submitted. Then what happens? • Cases assigned to a panel • What do we do once the briefs hit our desks?

  3. The Life of an Appeal • Clerks work up Memos • Everyone does it differently • What are the clerks looking for? • Judges read briefs and memos • What is a judge looking for? • Judges and clerks conference and discuss • Oral Argument? • Judges conference Wednesdays and vote • Then what happens?

  4. Motion Commotion • You file your motion---so then what happens? • The clerk’s office keeps track of when responses are due. Once the clock has run for all responses, the clerk’s office submits the motion to the court. • Motions are assigned to a judge, but the entire court votes on every motion, or the motion is “passed to panel” • Every Tuesday there is a motions and opinions conference where motions are discussed and voted on, and the circulated opinions are voted on. • What does a “good” motion look like?

  5. Petitions for Rehearing Petitions for Review • Ark. S. Ct. R. 2-3 and 2-4 • Rehearing: call attention to specific errors of law or fact which the opinion is thought to contain. • Review: to Supreme court. Must allege: • Tie vote, • Opinion conflicts with prior precedent, • Erred in respect to grounds in 1-2(b) • (1) first impression, • (2) perceived inconsistency with existing precedent • (3) issues involving federal constitutional interpretation, • (4) issues of substantial public interest, • (5) significant issues needing clarification or development of the law, or overruling of precedent, • (6) substantial question of law re: act of General Assembly, county/municipal ordinance, court/admin agency/regulatory body rules/regulations,

  6. Writing Better Briefs • 1) what did the court do wrong? How is your client specifically aggrieved? • 2) do you have explicit findings of fact and conclusions of law on whatever you need to appeal? If not - ask for them – ARCP 52 • 3) limit your points on appeal. Just because you get 30 pages does not mean you need 30 pages. • 4) use images, charts, and graphs • 5) no legalese • 6) Organization – put the most important thing first, then provide more, if needed, use section headings, shorter is always better

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