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Recent Appellate Practice Highlights: Sylvia Walbolt and Stephanie Zimmerman are co-authors of "I Must Dissent." Why?, published in the November 2008 issue of The Florida Bar Journal. On November 13, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court amended Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.370 to allow a potential amicus curiae, upon a party's attempt to invoke the Supreme Court's discretionary jurisdiction, to file a one-page notice with the Court indicating an intent to seek leave to file an amicus brief on the merits if the Court accepts jurisdiction. The notice will briefly explain why the case is of interest to the potential amicus and will assist the Court in ascertaining the relative importance of the case. This amendment came about as a result of an article by Sylvia Walbolt and Joe Lang entitled "Amicus Briefs: Friend or Foe of Florida Courts?" published in the Winter 2003 edition of the Stetson Law Review. To view our Appellate advertising campaign please click on the pdfs below:
Appellate "Apple"
Appellate "Orange"
Appellate and Trial Support Practice
Carlton Fields has Florida’s largest group of lawyers devoted exclusively to an appellate and trial support practice. Of the group’s 34-members, 19 attorneys are involved in appellate and trial support work on a day-to-day basis. This group includes Florida’s largest number of Board Certified appellate lawyers.
The depth and breadth of experience results in an efficient and sophisticated appellate practice, allowing the firm’s appellate advocates to focus on the procedural rules, unwritten customs, strategies for success, and avoiding traps that exist in practice before the appellate courts.
Our appellate practice, however, is not limited to the traditional work in appellate courts. Our attorneys team with trial counsel (whether from Carlton Fields or another firm), to provide litigation support by drafting and arguing dispositive motions, motions in limine, directed verdict motions, proposed jury instructions and verdict forms, and post-trial motions. In addition, our appellate lawyers attend trials to assist in preserving the record for appeal. Knowledge & Experience
Carlton Fields has a long and rich history of representing clients in all of Florida’s appellate courts, in addition to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and United States Supreme Court. The members of our practice group have participated in more than 1,100 appeals in Florida, including more than 40 in the Florida Supreme Court since 2000. At any time, the practice group is involved in 70-80 ongoing appeals. Click here for a list of select representative matters.
The Appellate Practice Group includes: - John R. Blue, a former Chief Judge of Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal, who authored more than 560 decisions, and participated in thousands of other appellate proceedings.
- A former Solicitor General and Deputy Solicitor General for the State of Florida;
- Twenty-one former appellate judicial clerks, including clerks for the United States Supreme Court, the Florida Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and Florida’s district courts of appeal;
- Seven attorneys board certified by The Florida Bar in Appellate Practice;
- Three Fellows of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, a national by-invitation-only organization, including a former president of the Academy.
Our attorneys are widely recognized for their knowledge of appellate law and related issues. Attorneys frequently lecture and publish articles and newsletters about appellate law, and participate in numerous professional organizations.
Related Services
Carlton Fields also offers a complete range of appellate related services. Some examples include: - Specialized Consulting Services: We are proud to offer the specialized consulting services of at least three senior attorneys whose prior experiences gives them a unique, insightful perspective into Florida appellate practice: John R. Blue, former chief judge of the Second District Court of Appeal and circuit court judge; Tom Warner, former Florida Solicitor General; and Sylvia H. Walbolt, appellate practitioner with over 40 years of appellate experience, as well as multiple leadership roles in organizations such as the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers (former President) and the Florida Supreme Court’s Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Civil Cases (former Chair).
- Amicus Briefs: We frequently submit amicus curiae briefs on important industry issues.
- Pro Bono Representation: Our lawyers are also committed to providing pro bono appellate services to those less fortunate in our society and to organizations that serve the disadvantaged.
- Client Seminars: We regularly present free seminars for clients and their trial counsel regarding trends and substantive changes in the law, as well as procedural issues such as preservation of the record.
- Week-At-A-Glance: To help clients and our own attorneys stay current on developments in Florida case law, we offer Week-At-A-Glance, a weekly, one page summary of every precedential decision released by Florida’s five intermediate appellate courts and the Florida Supreme Court. This online reference is an excellent way to stay informed on the subjects being addressed each week by Florida’s appellate courts.
Representative Industries - Product manufacturers
- Insurance
- Pharmaceutical
- Health care
- Nursing home providers
- Security services
- Energy
- Commercial and business entities
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