Summer Break 2025 - part two

 

Summer break continues - but both courts were active this week.  On Wednesday, July 16, 2025, the Arkansas Court of Appeals handed down a thirteen-page syllabus disposing of a number of motions.  On Thursday, July 17, 2025, the Arkansas Supreme Court handed down a ten-page syllabus noting per curiam orders and disposing of various matters.

There are a couple of interesting examples of petitions practice before the Supreme Court on that court's docket.

In CV-25-243, Purdue Global Law School petitioned the court to amend its rules governing admission to the bar "to create a path to bar admission for graduates of a class of accredited domestic law schools not approved by the American Bar Association...."  Skimming through the petition, it appears that Purdue prepared a thorough, citation-packed document in support of its request.  The court referred this petition to the Board of Law Examiners for a recommendation.

In CV-25-307, the Entrepreneurial Law Project, a joint project of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville's law school and business college, petitioned the court to be recognized as a legal aid service provider under a court rule "which authorizes non-admitted licensed attorneys to provide pro bono legal services under the auspices of a sponsoring entity."  This shorter petition was granted.

Summer break 2025

Arkansas's appellate courts are on summer break, but that does not mean complete inattention to ongoing business.  Yesterday, the Arkansas Court of Appeals handed down a twelve-page list of motions submitted for consideration.  You can find that syllabus here: https://opinions.arcourts.gov/ark/courtofappeals/en/523735/1/document.do  If past practice is a guide, then next Wednesday, July 16, 2025, orders resolving these motions will be announced.

I have six motions in four cases on yesterday's syllabus - two of those motions involve fees - so I will be paying attention next Wednesday.

Otherwise, I am still working toward a "part 2" of opinion highlights from the Court of Appeals' June 4, 2025, proceedings.  Stay tuned.

Book notes: The Appellate Prosecutor: A Practical and Inspirational Guide to Appellate Advocacy (Ronald H. Clark ed. 2005)

 

This volume contains short chapters authored by various judges and attorneys on appellate practice from the prosecution's perspective.  In addition to the forward, there are seventeen chapters titled as follows:

1. Persuasion, Planning and Analysis for Appellate Advocacy
2. Writing the Brief
3. Sample Appellate Brief Template
4. Short Declarative Sentences: The Key to Good Legal Writing
5. Writing the Persuasive Brief (And Some Matters of Style)
6. Appellate Strategies
7. Research Resources: An Appellate Lawyer's Tools of the Trade
8. Standards of Review: The First Line of Defense
9. Protecting the Record for Appeal: Advice for the Trial Prosecutor
10. Professional Responsibility on Appeal
11. How Appealing is Your Case? Eight Considerations That May Influence a Decision to Appeal
12. Successful Appellate Oral Advocacy
13. Taking Advantage of Oral Argument
14. Decision Making: Conferencing of Cases
15. Judicial Conferencing in Appellate Courts
16. Fielding Difficult Questions From the Bench
17. Inspirational Works for the Appellate Prosecutor

At 219 total pages in the book, these chapters are necessarily short.  Some chapters aren't that helpful and some authors are better writers than others.

Nonetheless, this book is recommended.  If you bring criminal direct appeals, the book provides insight into how the State may approach your case.  That was the reason I read the book before attending NLADA's Appellate Defender Training in May 2025 - the contrast in approaches is very useful for understanding criminal appeals.

The recommendations on how to draft a statement of facts (pp. 33-40) illustrate this point.  The author gives several great examples of how to draft these statements in a way highly favorable to the State.  The key is to make judges want to rule for you, that "the judges' emotional sympathies and feelings of fair play make them hope they are able to rule for you." (p. 34)  The State can relay the facts "in the light most favorable to the jury's verdict" and should do so by telling a story, not summarizing witness testimony. (pp. 34-35)

Similarly, at various points the book identifies techniques used by defense counsel and how the State should combat them.  We are told that witness by witness recitation of the facts "is a defense technique, designed to suck the life out of the story of the case." (p. 35)  State's counsel should anticipate defense counsel's "attempt to transmute discretionary questions into mixed questions of law and fact that are reviewed de novo." (p. 125)  And do not allow gaps of silence in the record - such as off-the-record discussions - or "the defense bar [will] fill such silences with inflammatory speculation which proves disturbing to the appellate courts...." (p. 133)

The book is also a good primer or review of techniques and tips for any appellate practice.  For example, various authors recommend telling a story when relating the facts, as opposed to proceeding in a chronological fashion or summarizing testimony witness by witness. (pp. 19, 35, 69, 70)  Chapters 2, 5, 6, 8, 12, 13, and 16 were great refreshers.

If you are trying to understand criminal appeals better, or simply want a primer or review of appellate practice, this book is worth your time and attention.  I have several pages of notes to show for my effort and will incorporate these into my practice.

Thanks for reading.