From an appellate lawyer’s perspective, one of the trickiest parts of trial practice is preserving issues for appeal.
And one of the most difficult–and, unfortunately, the most common–variations of the problem arises when the trial court does something important off the record. That can happen in chambers, at sidebar, in the hall, or practically anywhere.
Here are more of the questions and searches that have led people to De Novo, and our feeble attempts to address them:
Cufflinks at oral argument?
No.
Noting objections on a final judgment order in Virginia.
Generally a good idea, espcially if the trial court is still in a position to take corrective action.
The Supreme Court of Virginia dropped a pair of decisions on us last month that highlight the wisdom of Mr. Baldwin’s* worldview–although, oddly enough, neither came up in the context of contracts. Read together, the holdings in Aguilera v. Christian and Shipe v. Hunter make it clear that when the Code or the Rules require a lawyer to sign a pleading, they mean that the lawyer has to physically sign the pleading.
In Aguilera, the Court held that a pro se litigant could not authorize a person who wasn’t authorized to practice law in Virginia to sign a pleading on his behalf.
Aguilera asked his neighbor, who was licensed to practice in DC but not Virginia, to sign a complaint. It appears that he did so on the day before the two-year statute of limitations on his claim ran.
The trial court dismissed the case, and the Supreme Court affirmed. It held that Aguilera’s complaint was a nullity because it was not signed by the party or a lawyer licensed to practice in Virginia.
Shipe is marginally more interesting. It addressed the related question of whether a lawyer who’s licensed in Virginia may authorize a lawyer who is licensed elsewhere, but not in Virginia, to sign a pleading on the Virginia lawyer’s behalf.
The answer, as you’ve surely guessed, is no. The trial court held that the complaint was a nullity, entered summary judgment in favor of the defendant, and dismissed the case with prejudice.Continue Reading Only One Thing Counts in This World: Get Them to Sign on the Line Which is Dotted
Our office has been in the midst of a debate about moot-courting appellate arguments.
Some lawyers think that it’s invaluable; a moot court allows you to test themes and arguments, and exposes you to lines of questioning that you wouldn’t have otherwise anticipated. Others find it costly and excessive. They rarely if ever moot their