Appeals

Whether you are seeking to challenge an unfavorable ruling by the court or preserve a success at trial, you need a team of lawyers who are not just effective litigators but also have the skill to write a persuasive brief and present the argument in a court of appeals. Our appellate litigators have argued before appellate courts including the Maryland Supreme Court, the D.C. Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the D.C. and Fourth Circuits, and authored briefs and petitions involving complex and novel issues in the U.S. Supreme Court and other appellate courts around the country.

Skilled Appellate Brief Writers

The heart of an appeal is the brief, where even years-long litigation must be distilled to only a few thousand words. Sharp legal writing is crucial. Our attorneys have authored briefs in appeals courts around the country and know how to present complex legal questions and knotty factual issues with excellent reasoning and understandable and clarity. We pride ourselves on producing briefs that are not just technically sophisticated but also elegantly written to make the best impression on the judges reading them.

Accomplished Oral Advocates

Our attorneys have argued numerous appeals in Maryland, D.C., and federal appeals courts. We prepare thoroughly for argument to ensure that we know the record and law exhaustively, and we work to anticipate the questions the court may ask. We also strive to argue cases with the same poise and clarity that we bring to our written briefs.

Diverse Appellate Experience

We have handled appeals from a broad range of decisions including civil judgments, serious felony convictions, and administrative agency actions. Examples of our attorneys’ appellate experience include:

• On behalf of a federal agency, successfully defending a $90 million fine in a D.C. Circuit case involving constitutional questions under newly decided Supreme Court precedent.
• Obtaining reversal of a client’s felony conviction on appeal after successfully arguing that the client’s right to counsel had been violated at trial.
• On behalf of the State of Maryland, drafting a petition for certiorari in the Supreme Court in a case involving novel constitutional questions.