Establishing a good record in the trial court is an enormous advantage to persons seeking to appeal a judgment. The record is all of the documents filed in the trial court that the appellate court will have access to when making its decision. In short, the record is the facts of your case.
The person responsible for preparing the record is the clerk of the circuit court in the county where the case was decided. Putting together the record can take several months. During this time, the court reporter prepares the transcripts and the clerk of court organizes materials filed in the trial court. Documents absent from the record will not be considered by the Court of Appeals. Thus, making sure the record includes all of the documents and transcripts that will be referenced in the brief is essential.
Both parties have the opportunity to review the clerk’s compilation of the record before it goes to the Court of Appeals. The time to review can be quite short – as little as 10 days. Review affords the parties a chance to remedy discrepancies by supplementing the record. Once the record is sent to the appellate court however, it may not be changed or supplemented.
Happily, after the record is received by the appellate court, substantial argumentation begins. The case is one step closer to final disposition. If you have any questions about the appeals process or the status of the record in your case, contact The Alderman Law Firm today for your free consultation by calling 720-588-3529 (CO) or 608-620-3529 (WI).