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Appeals Attorney in New Jersey
Post-Conviction Relief (PCR) Attorneys
APPELLATE PRACTICE
Whether you had a case decided unfavorable against you in Municipal or Superior Court, the Appeals or “Appellate” process is as challenging to understand as it is to be successful in. Appeals are extraordinarily technical in both procedure and substance and include a vast array of constraints, restrictions and legal requirements to even begin the appeal process itself. Appellate work is extremely rigorous and mandates a broad understanding of applicable statutes, case-law, Court Rules Appellate Practice guidelines in order to maximize the possibility of a successful Appeal. The filing of the appeal only begins the aforementioned process; which hopefully culminates a reversal or vacating of the lower Court’s ruling and a return of your matter to the active docket from the Court of original jurisdiction. The filing of Appellate Briefs is governed by an entire section of the New Jersey Court Rules, dedicated entirely to the myriad of format restrictions, sufficiency of contents, pre-requisite information to be contained therein, etc. Exhaustive legal research and effective writing are of paramount importance whenever endeavoring upon an Appeal in the State of New Jersey. Unless your case involves a Constitutional Question, Bankruptcy or arguing that a State Statute is Unconstitutional / Invalid, it will remain within New Jersey State Judiciary and proceed from / through the Municipal Court, Superior Court of New Jersey, The Appellate Division and finally the New Jersey Supreme Court.
MUNICIPAL APPEALS
Cases originating from convictions in any of the 532 Municipal Courts throughout the State are appealed to the Superior Court in whichever County the Municipality is located. An appeal must be filed within twenty (20) days from the date of either a plea or finding of guilt after a trial. If the appeal is not properly filed in the Superior Court before the end of the 20-day period, a particular party seeking an appeal may forever lose their right to and opportunity for relief from the higher Court. Cases involving convictions for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) or Refusal to Submit to Chemical Breath Tests (Refusal) are the most common cases that are subjects of Appeal from the Municipal Court. Once an appeal and corresponding briefs are filed by both the defendant-appellant as well as the plaintiff-respondent; that is The State of New Jersey in Municipal Appeals, the case will be scheduled for oral argument in the Criminal Division of the County Superior Court.
APPEALS FROM THE SUPERIOR COURT
If a Municipal Appeal is denied by the Superior Court, or if a case originates in the Superior Court, the next step if an appeal is desired is to file for review within forty-five (45) days from the date of Judgment, Entry of Order, Decision or Conviction if the matter is Criminal in Nature. As with all appeals, the process itself is highly complicated and can be easily misconstrued and therefore have catastrophic results for your case. The filing of the Notice of Appeal is much more difficult once cases reach this level and absolutely necessitate an understanding and familiarity with the methodology and substance of your subject matter and rules of the Court. Once a briefing schedule is set by the Appellate Division, specificity of time constraints regarding the filing of Appellant’s Brief begin to toll and may become arduous and daunting in and of themselves. If your appeal is granted, your case will be returned to the Court where it was originally heard as if the Judgment, Order and/or Conviction did not occur. If your appeal is denied, the New Jersey Supreme Court, or “The Court of Last Resort” as it is referred, is the last possibility for relief unless and until a Federal Issue is raised, which then ultimately may be decided by the Supreme Court of the United States, who have to accept the case or “grant certiorari.”
POST CONVICTION RELIEF
If a litigant / defendant is dissatisfied and aggrieved by a result other than what can be raised on direct appeal, he or she may file what is commonly known as a Post-Conviction Relief (PCR) Motion in the Court of original jurisdiction. These types of proceedings are appropriate when a case result stemmed from or was a direct or proximate cause of Ineffective assistance of Counsel, or that an attorney’s performance during their representation of a particular client was so deficient, that but for the attorney’s errors, omissions, mistakes, the results would not have been the same. More succinctly, if there was some inadequacy in the representation itself that can be attributable to a less than favorable result, a case be reviewed under this standard. These matters must be brought back before the Court and filed for within five (5) years from the date of Judgment, Entry of Order, Decision or Conviction if the matter is Criminal in Nature. The Court may accept an application at any time; however, if good cause can be shown under the Court Rules. Newly discovered evidence, excusable neglect / delay as well as possible subsequent changes in the laws governing a particular matter are some examples of possible grounds for PCR after the 5-year limitation. The Court will examine the party’s moving papers as well as any opposition from an adversary to determine whether an Evidentiary Hearing is necessary to further determine if Post Conviction Relief should be granted. If s hearing is set, the party moving for relief must endure the burden to show what occurred that would warrant a re-opening of a case, a withdrawal of a guilty plea or the overturning of a conviction or Judgment.