If you believe the court made a legal mistake in your case, an appeal may allow a higher court to review that decision. An appeal is generally not a new trial. The appellate court reviews the lower court record and the parties’ legal arguments. At Beasley Tomlinson Law, our Greenville criminal defense attorneys and appeals lawyers review the record and the lower court’s decision to determine whether legal errors provide grounds for appeal.
An Appeal Challenges an Error in the Lower Court Proceedings
A disappointing result alone doesn’t usually provide grounds for an appeal. An appellate case may focus on whether the lower court:
- Applied the wrong law
- Made an improper evidentiary ruling
- Gave an incorrect jury instruction
- Made a constitutional error
- Misinterpreted a statute or legal rule
- Made another legal error that affected the result
For example, if a jury returns a guilty verdict after the trial judge improperly excludes important defense evidence, your appeal may challenge that ruling. The appellate court would review the record and the legal issue rather than simply retrying your case.
South Carolina Appeal Deadlines Are Short
Rule 203 of the South Carolina Appellate Court Rules sets deadlines for notices of appeal. For a plea or trial resulting in a conviction in the Court of General Sessions, the notice of appeal generally must be served within 10 days after sentencing. You generally appeal convictions in magistrate or municipal court to the circuit court, which has its own filing requirements and a similarly short deadline. Missing the deadline can result in dismissal of the appeal.
The Trial Record is the Starting Point for Your Appeal
Our appeals attorneys work primarily from the lower court record. They may review court transcripts, the indictment, pretrial motions and rulings, jury instructions, exhibits, sentencing records, and the final judgment. Rule 210 states that the appellate court generally will not consider facts that don’t appear in the Record on Appeal. That makes the existing court record especially important. If the record lacks an objection, ruling, or piece of evidence, it may limit what the appellate court can review.
To be preserved for appeal, an issue generally must have been raised in the trial court, usually through a timely objection or motion, and ruled on by the judge. An issue that was never raised below may not be reviewable on appeal, even if an error occurred.
What a Criminal Appeal Can Challenge
A criminal appeal may challenge a conviction, sentence, evidentiary ruling, jury instruction, or other legal error in the trial court proceedings. Appeals after a guilty plea are generally more limited than appeals after a trial, since a plea can waive many issues. For Greenville residents, cases from the 13th Judicial Circuit generally proceed to the South Carolina Court of Appeals, and the South Carolina Supreme Court may later review some.
Some claims, such as ineffective assistance of trial counsel, are usually raised through post-conviction relief rather than a direct appeal. Post-conviction relief has its own filing deadlines.
How Our Appeals Attorneys Build Your Case From the Trial Record
When you work with our appeals lawyers, they may:
- Scrutinize the full trial record
- Identify possible legal errors
- Research statutes, court rules, and prior decisions
- Determine whether each issue was preserved
- Prepare and file the notice of appeal
- Draft appellate briefs
- Respond to the State’s arguments
- Prepare for oral argument when applicable
Our goal is to present a focused appellate argument supporting the relief the case warrants, whether that means reversal of a conviction, a new trial, or resentencing.
Talk to Our Greenville, SC, Appeals Lawyers Before the Deadline Passes
An unfavorable ruling doesn’t always provide grounds for an appeal, but a legal error may. Because South Carolina imposes short deadlines in many cases, waiting to examine the record can put your rights at risk. Send an online message to Beasley Tomlinson or call 864-775-5787 to request your confidential case review.
