Your Appellate Advocates

Our rare blend of experience, skills, and interests make us uniquely qualified to serve as appellate attorneys, which requires a different skillset than a trial attorney. Our founder, Jessy Leifer, often describes trial advocacy as improv- an attorney must be sharp and responsive in the moment. Appellate work is more detail oriented and studious, starting with a legal brief followed by an oral argument. The attorney must be extremely prepared and first write a brief summarizing their legal arguments supported by extensive legal research and analysis, which is submitted to a panel of judges.

There is no jury at an appeal hearing, no witnesses, no action to object. Instead, it is a panel of judges, and each attorney delivers an oral argument where they have a conversation of sorts the panel about the errors that the judge in the trial court may or may not have committed in applying the law and appropriate procedures. This conversation is more measured than a trial, and the attorney must know the record backwards and forwards, inside and out, as well as when and why the trial judge may or may not have erred in applying the law. Both the brief and oral argument are used to persuade the judges’ panel.

Guilt or innocence is not an issue in appellate proceedings. Instead, it is about whether a person’s right to a fair trial was violated. Our passion and skillset together ensure that you will have an advocate that will fight for your rights zealously and effectively.