Florida Lawyer Blog

A legal proceeding begins in a trial court and ends in a trial court. The case can conclude right there in a trial court after a complete trial. However, if any of the contesting parties of the legal battle are not happy with the outcome of the case, then they might make an appeal for a review of the judgment of the trial court. Such an appeal is initiated with the filing of a formal notice of appeal. The party that makes an appeal is referred to as an appellant and the case is filed in tandem with appellate law that calls for the furnishing of materials from the trial courts.
The appellate courts do not conduct the trial all over again or take into consideration fresh evidence. What they do is review the decision of the trial courts to see whether the decision was taken following the correct legal procedures. In fact the scope of such a review is quite limited and therefore the issues that come up during such a court proceeding are different from the ones raised in a trial court.
There are 13 federal circuit courts that form a part of the federal appellate system and each of them consists of an appellate court. The state of Florida is a part of the Eleventh Circuit that generally operates from Atlanta. At times cases are also heard in cities like Miami, Montgomery and Jacksonville. The state has three district courts. So if a case is filed in the Court for the Southern District of Florida, for example, then an appeal for a review of its decision would be made in the Court of Appeals that forms a part of the Eleventh Circuit. It is best to hire the service of a Florida appellate lawyer for this purpose.