The California Appellate Law Podcast
Episodes
226 episodes
Top 10 Tips for Family Law Appeals
Every day as an appeals lawyer brings new puzzles. But some puzzles repeat. So in this episode, we compile the top 10 tips dispensed regularly to trial attorneys working in family court. They include:đ Know your appealable issuesâappeal ...
Social Media and Jury Waiver High Court Cases, and Other Appellate News
The U.S. Supreme Court provides awaited guidance on public officialsâ use of social media, and the California Supreme Court gives a cautionary tale about waiving the right to a jury trial. Jeff and I discuss:đ°Free Speech on Governme...
Five Hard Truths About an Appellate Practice, with Raffi Melkonian
Raffi Melkonian has argued and won in the U.S. Supreme Court, and started the #AppellateTwitter community of appellate attorneys on Twitter/X, where he has over 65,000 followers, and speaks and writes on appeals across the country. And Raffi is...
Sanctions, Successful Reconsideration, and Other Feb. 2024 Cases
We discuss how to avoid appellate sanctions, and an unusually successful motion for reconsideration:$50k sanctions against appellant for blowing appellate procedure.Motion for reconsideration was untimely, but righteous. Tr...
Judge Nazarian to Judges: Take the Accountability Pledge
There are 30,000 law clerks in the U.S., and we have no good way to know to judge their experiences. So Judge Douglas Nazarian of the Appellate Court of Marylandâand board member of the Legal Accountability Projectâasks judges everywhere to tak...
Sleep Well to Crush Your Enemies, with Leslie Porter
You thought health and wellness was just for hippies, losers and weirdos. But you were wrong. Leslie Porter explains that if you are waiting for your health issues to become acute enough for a prescription, you are not at your best. Not only ar...
So You Think You Understand the Snitch Rule?
Next time your opposing counsel takes issue with something you say, donât be surprised to find a complaint in the next filing citing to rule 8.3 of the Rules of Professional Conductâthe new âsnitch rule.âThere are about a dozen terms of ...
Kyle OâMalley, the Attorney Who Won the Rainesâ Supreme Court Employee-Screening Case
Just a few years out of law school, Kyle OâMalley won a landmark case in the Supreme Court of California. The employerâs screening service in *
No More Anti-SLAPPs in Fed Court? With Cory Webster
The 9th Circuit is taking up the ostensible narrow issue of appealability of anti-SLAPP orders. But it could be broader. Much broader. If the court decides anti-SLAPPs are procedural rather than substantive, says Cory Webster, that would mean n...
Cert on Homeless Encampments and En Banc on SLAPPs
The Supreme Court has granted cert on whether prosecuting a homeless sidewalk-camper is cruel and unusual punishment. And the 9th Circuit has granted en banc review whether anti-SLAPP denials are appealable.Also: You are doing MSJ separa...
Calâs initial disclosures, minimum discovery sanctions, & some ÂŻ\(ă)/ÂŻ cases
California law now provides for initial discovery disclosures. Get a template handy for your upcoming cases. And watch out for the new minimum $1,000 sanction for discovery misconduct.And some recent cases:The definitive answ...
How appellate attorneys beat summary judgments, with Yisrael Gelb
Yisrael Gelb focuses his appellate practice on helping plaintiff lawyers beat summary judgment. We talk about some of his approaches to successfully opposing summary judgment motions, including:đ§ Look for common defects in the movin...
2023âs Best Guests, Cases & Tech
Looking back on the yearâs 50 episodes, we discuss some of our best guests, including our 9th Circuit correspondent, Cory Webster, our legal-writing correspondent, Ryan McCarl, our legal-movie correspondent, Gary Wax, and our inspirational publ...
Eugene Volokh on Restraining Orders and the First Amendment
Prof. Eugene Volokh joined us to discuss restraining orders, how many of them violate the First Amendment as unlawful prior restraints, and how you can spot the First Amendment problems. The purpose of a restraining orders is to get a person to...
High-Profile Employment Appeals with Glenn Danas
Employment and class-action attorney Glenn Danas has argued 49 appeals in state and federal appellate courts throughout the country, including a current streak of eight consecutive reversals. Glenn talks with us about litigating the landmark
Liar in a Crowded Theater, with Jeff Kosseff
Turns out you CAN shout âfireâ in a crowded theater, and lots of other lies besidesâunless the government meets a heavy burden, that is. The author of four books and more than 20 academic articles, First Amendment scholar and Naval Academy asso...
Thankful for Unpublished Opinions
In a recent opinion, the Court of Appeal reversed by noting that one of the grounds supporting the judgment was forfeitedâŚby the respondent.Wait. By the respondent? An appellant must be careful not to forfeit argument, ...
Appellate Bonds: What You Client Needs to Know, with Dan Huckabay
Trial resulted in a sizable judgment against your client. You know to stay judgment enforcement you have to post a bond, but what, exactly, does that mean? And how do you do it?Enter Dan Huckabay from Court Surety Bond Agency. We sit dow...
Elegant Legal Writing, with author Ryan McCarl
Ryan McCarl, author of the latest book on legal writing, Elegant Legal Writing, sits down with us to discuss why now, more than ever, attorneys need to elevate beyond ChatGPT and distractions to rise to our role as teachers of t...
Reversals on Technicalities: 4 Recent Examples
Appellate courts are in the affirming business. But be ready to take advantage of easy reversals, like in these examples:đ If the court refuses to hold an evidentiary hearing in a contested probate matter, that is (probably) structural e...
How Appellate Lawyers Debate Gun Control and Abortion
Ninth Circuit correspondent Cory Webster joins us to discuss the courtâs unusually busy en banc docket and its own species of âshadow docket.â We discuss how parties and judges are moving a few hot-button cases into procedural positions that ma...
CM/ECF Is Outdated So Get Ready for the 9th Circuitâs ACMS, with Susan Gelmis
Have you ever had trouble e-file something and had someone tell you to try a different web browser? When it comes to the CM/ECF system used by federal courts, that problem has to do with aging technology reliant on âjavaâ plugins, which have se...
The 9th Cir. âReimaginesâ Diversity Jurisdiction
The one sure thing your law-school loans purchased is instant recall of the fact that âfederal courts are courts of limited jurisdiction.âBut not as limited today as when you signed your promissory note. We discuss Impossible Foods Inc. ...
How to Prepare for Oral Argument
Have an appellate oral argument coming up? We discuss tips shared by top appellate attorneys how to prepare for and give oral arguments. Some tips include:đŁď¸ Anticipate the panelâs questions when you can, butâŚđŁď¸ âŚbe prepared to re...
The Power of Anti-SLAPP Motions: Sept. 2023 Cases
Anti-SLAPP motions are sometimes called early summary judgment motions. But the fact that they are âearlyâ is why they are so powerful: not only do they provide defendants a quick way to defend against claims that involve speech, they force the...
