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May 23, 2022
The Probate “Stay-Killer”

Probate litigator and appellate attorney David Greco tells why the probate “stay killer” is his “favorite provision in the Probate Code.” Probate Code section 1310(b) allows a probate judge to override the automatic appellate stay, which can, in many cases, render the appeal moot. David explains why this is an important tool in many probate cases. Watch...

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May 19, 2022
What Family Law Attorneys Can Miss on Appeals

Victoria Fuller, a certified appellate specialist focusing on family law, explains what family law attorneys most often misunderstand about the appellate process. Her answer: “substantial evidence” review. Appellate review of a factual finding doesn’t just mean deference to the trial court. It means the appellate court considers only—only—the other side’s evidence, and completely disregards your...

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May 18, 2022
There’s Actually a Big Difference Between Motions for Nonsuit and Judgment: A Rebuttal to Prof. Martin

The trial court may not deem the right to a jury trial waived simply because the plaintiff failed to comply with local rules, like failing to submit trial binders. That is the important point about waiver of the right to a jury trial in Amato v. Downs (D4d2 May 6, 2022 No. E075421) -- Cal.Rptr.3d...

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May 17, 2022
Ross Guberman on Conversational—Rather Than Tweet-Worthy—Legal Writing

Drawing from his experience training federal judges and top law lawyers how to write more effectively, Ross Guberman shares some of his best writing tips with Jeff and Tim on episode 33 of the California Appellate Law Podcast at www.CALPodcast.com. Ross also gives a tour of his latest product, BriefCatch 3.0 (now available on Mac),...

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May 16, 2022
Draft Your RFAs With Costs of Proof and Settlement in Mind

CEB has published my article on Spahn v. Richards (2021) 72 Cal.App.5th 208, which awarded a staggering $239,000 in costs-of-proof attorney fees for refusing to admit a request for admission. You can read the article here. The PDF article is here: Tim Kowal_Draft Your RFAs With Costs of Proof and Settlement in Mind.pdf Spahn held...

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May 13, 2022
Are the Courts Split on Untimely Appeals?

You have heard courts say that a timely notice of appeal is a prerequisite. As in, non-negotiable. As in, the court doesn’t even have jurisdiction to consider your appeal, so don’t even ask, ok? (E.g., Silverbrand v. Cty. of Los Angeles (2009) 46 Cal.4th 106, 113 [“[T]he filing of a timely notice of appeal is...

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May 12, 2022
Why Family Law Writ Petitions Are So Hard

We asked Victoria Fuller, a certified appellate specialist focusing on family law, about getting the appellate court’s attention in family law writ petitions. Showing extraordinary harm in money cases is a tough sell, but it should work in family cases, right? Victoria explains that it is just just very hard, even when there is genuine irreparable...

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May 11, 2022
Read This Before Using a Settled Statement for Your Appeal

The mother appealing the parentage order in R.M. v. J.J. (D3 Apr. 29, 2022 no. C090018) 2022 WL 1301801 (nonpub. opn.) had a solid issue on appeal: her ex-husband had made frequent angry outbursts and hostile gesticulations throughout the day-long hearing. The mother thought this display of her ex-husband’s rather obvious need of anger management...

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May 10, 2022
How to Mediate and Settle Your Appeal, with John Derrick (Cal.App.Law Podcast ep. 32)

Certified appellate specialist and mediator John Derrick talks to Jeff and Tim about mediating cases on appeal. John explains that some appellate courts have mediation programs because of a mission to promote settlement. But the courts’ job is to decide cases. John discusses the conflict between these two roles, including a story about an appellate...

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May 4, 2022
No Right to In-Person Appearances

Although the defendant specifically invoked his constitutional and statutory right to to be “personally present” at his sentencing hearing, the California Court of Appeal in People v. Whitmore (D4d3 no. G059779) 2022 WL 1284371 ___ Cal.Rptr.3d ___, held that limiting a defendant to a virtual appearance, while legally improper, creates no harm. The court affirmed...

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May 3, 2022
“Stump Tim,” Do Sympathetic Parties Get Better Results? And Other Recent Cases

After Jeff quizzes Tim on a bit of appellate esoterica about the automatic 15-day default extension for appellate briefs, the co-hosts discuss whether appellate justices modulate their approaches to sympathetic cases. The conversation also covers recent cases involving: Defective notices of appeal. Can an action be dismissed pending appeal? A surprising recent case answered “No.”...

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May 2, 2022
Untimely Appeal from Judgment Should Have Been Taken From Denial of Petition for Mandamus, Published Opinion Holds

Commentator Michael Shipley calls this one a “bait and switch.” In Meinhardt v. City of Sunnyvale (D4d1 Mar. 9, 2022 No. D079451) 2022 WL 702912 ___ Cal.Rptr.3d ___, a police officer lost his petition for writ of mandamus. The trial court entered a signed “order” in August, served the same day. But the court did...

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April 28, 2022
Litigating for 13 Months Does Not Waive Arbitration, But Dissent Disagrees

[Update: After I filed an amicus curiae request for publication of this opinion, the Court granted rehearing on its own motion, and re-issued a modified and partially published opinion. The Court published its holding that the defendant seeking arbitration here had not waived arbitration by litigating for 13 months. The result is the same, but...

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April 27, 2022
Counsel Admonished for Failing to Note Order on Appeal Was Not Appealable

The appellate court in People v. Williams (2022) 75 Cal.App.5th 584 admonished a criminal defendant’s attorney for failing to tell the court about a relevant case that had held the kind of order involved there was not appealable. The appeal was from an order denying resentencing under Penal Code 1170. The defendant had petitioned for...

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April 26, 2022
Jeff Lewis Interviews Tim Kowal, on episode 30 of the Cal. Appellate Law Podcast

In this special episode, Jeff interviews me about the best and worst things about appellate law. I talk about a couple of my favorite war stories, my approach to legal writing, and my favorite comedian. Then to business, we discuss some recent cases, including appellate sanctions for trial court conduct, the nonappealability of arbitrator injunctions,...

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April 25, 2022
“Impossible” Burden Met on Appeal: But Dissent Disagrees

You know about “de novo” and “abuse of discretion” and “substantial evidence.” But most attorneys have never heard of the “finding compelled as a matter of law” standard of appellate review. That is because it rarely comes up. The “compelled finding” standard only comes up when the party with the burden of proof (usually plaintiff)...

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April 20, 2022
What Happens If You File Your Appeal Too Early?

You know it is deadly to file an appeal too late. But there is also such a thing as filing an appeal too early. In the recent case Moreles v. Herrera (D4d1 Apr. 12, 2022 no. D077032) 2022 WL 1090255 (nonpub. opn.), the court decided to save the appeal. But the decision is at the...

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April 19, 2022
David Greco on the Unique Challenges in Probate Appeals

On episode 29 of the California Appellate Law Podcast, probate appellate attorney David Greco joins Tim Kowal and Jeff Lewis to discuss some of the unique features and challenges in probate appeals: Fact challenges in probate appeals are uniquely difficult to win. Probate trials are typically bench trials, and appellate courts very rarely overturn a...

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April 18, 2022
Dismissing an Appeal Means the Judgment Is Affirmed—But Not in This Unusual Case

When I first read Art Works Studio & Classroom, LLC v. Leonian (D2d7 Apr. 12, 2022 no. B304461) 2022 WL 1090984 (nonpub. opn.), something seemed odd about it. I had to read it again to be sure: it is definitely odd. The factual setup is not that odd. It is a commercial lease dispute. The...

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April 14, 2022
Identifying Wrong Order in Notice of Appeal Results in Dismissal (in Contrast to Another Recent Case)

The court sympathizes with the appellant here whose two motions to vacate were denied, but holds that by listing only the second denial in the notice of appeal, the court could not reach the merits of the first denial. In Ramirez v. Oxford Properties, Inc. (D4d2 Apr. 12. 2022 no. E076022) 2022 WL 1090899 (nonpub....

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April 13, 2022
'Gamesmanship' Throughout Litigation May Raise Risk of Sanctions on Appeal

CEB published my short article on McQueen v. Huang (D2d8 Mar. 4, 2022 no. B304645) 2022 WL 630606, a decision that imposed appellate sanctions on a litigant based on “gamesmanship” in the trial court. Not in the appellate court — the appellate sanctions were for trial court conduct. The article is available at CEB’s website...

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April 12, 2022
Creators of the CalAttorneysFees.com Blog, Michael Hensley and Marc Alexander, Discuss Tips for Requesting and Opposing Attorney Fees

The authors of the famous CalAttorneysFees.com blog, Marc Alexander and Michael Hensley, visit the California Appellate Law Podcast to discuss tips, traps, and best practices on attorney fee motions. We discuss why California’s attorney fees statutes can be so complicated, why reasonable fees sometimes get cut, and why unreasonable fees sometimes don’t. Some key takeaways:...

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April 7, 2022
Case May Not Be Dismissed During Appeal

Can you dismiss your lawsuit while it’s on appeal? No. That is the surprising holding of Curtin Maritime Corp. v. Pacific Dredge & Const. (D4d1 Mar. 22, 2022) no. -- Cal.Rptr.3d ---- 2022 WL 841760. The plaintiff had successfully opposed the defendant’s anti-SLAPP motion, and the defendant appealed the order denying its motion. The plaintiff...

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April 6, 2022
The Doomsday Provision and the Natural Right to Self Defense

Who needs the Second Amendment? Judge Kozinski once called the constitutional right to bear arms as the “doomsday provision”: that right to which a free citizens resorts when all other rights have failed. But what role does that right have left to play in a hyper power like the U.S.? Second Amendment attorney Sean Brady, Jeff Lewis,...

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April 5, 2022
Failure to Make Required Findings Held Reversible Per Se

Trial courts are required to make findings after certain proceedings. So is a court’s failure to make findings reversible error? A few years ago, the California Supreme Court answered: No. (F.P. v. Monier (2017) 3 Cal.5th 1099 [failure to issue statement of decision not reversible per se].) Instead, to be reversible, the trial court’s failure...

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April 4, 2022
The 9th Circuit’s Skewed 2nd Amendment Scorecard

Judge VanDyke recently criticized the 9th Circuit’s practice of granting en banc review in every recent pro-2nd Amendment decision—and denying review of every pro-gun control decision. And he’s right, says 2nd Amendment litigator Sean Brady. Sean talks with Jeff Lewis and me about his recent amicus brief on that very phenomenon, cataloguing 9th Cir. cases that: Rely on...

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March 31, 2022
About That Cheeky Concurrence by Judge VanDyke

Legal commentators were taken aback by Judge VanDyke’s concurring opinion mocking the 9th Circuit’s inevitable en banc review of the majority opinion—also authored by Judge VanDyke. But Second Amendment litigator Sean Brady explains why he thinks Judge VanDyke will be vindicated in his criticism of the 9th Circuit’s trend of late on Second Amendment cases. And Jeff Lewis and...

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March 30, 2022
Trial Court’s Refusal to Consider Declaration Supporting Domestic Violence Restraining Order Held Grounds for Reversal

Trial judges have wide latitude over the evidence that comes into the record at trial. The judge might sustain an objection to your smoking gun, or could allow damaging evidence despite your valid objections. These problems may be raised on appeal, but appellate courts give trial judges wide latitude on evidentiary rulings. But not in...

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March 29, 2022
A Second Restraining Order Made Appeal of Earlier Restraining Order Moot

The appellant in Singh v. Bains (D5 Mar. 10, 2022 no. F082506) 2022 WL 714679 (nonpub. opn.) was in pro per, so don’t read too much into this, but something does not sit right about this memorandum opinion. (A memorandum opinion is a more abbreviated form of opinion when a cause raises “no substantial issues...

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March 28, 2022
The most frequently committed legal writing mistakes

Attorney Ryan McCarl, author of Elegant Legal Writing, tells Jeff Lewis and me the top three things lawyers do wrong in their briefs: (1) Legalese (are you really still using legalese?) (2) Long sentences with no clear structure or emphasis (3) Failing to mind the “cognitive load” of your reader. Watch the clip here.  This is...

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