The clock starts at the judgment
The time to file a notice of appeal is measured in weeks, not months, and courts almost never extend it. Here is what starts it and what can change it.
People often learn about the deadline to appeal from the lawyer who lost their trial, or from no one at all. It is one of the shortest deadlines in the law, and one of the least forgiving. If the notice of appeal is late, the appellate court usually has no power to hear the case, however strong it is.
What starts the clock
The time runs from the day the judgment or appealable order is entered on the court's docket, which is not always the day the judge announced the decision or the day you received a copy. The written order controls. That is why the first question on a call is always the date on the order.
What can pause it
Certain post-trial motions, filed on time, can delay the start of the clock until the court rules on them. A motion for rehearing or for a new trial is the common one. But a motion that isn't the right kind, or isn't filed on time, may not delay anything, and people lose appeals that way.
Criminal cases
In a criminal case, the clock usually runs from the written sentence. Post-conviction motions have deadlines of their own, often longer, and some of them depend on when new facts were discovered. Federal habeas petitions run on yet another clock, which state filings can pause or not.
What to do this week
- Find the written judgment or order, and the date it was entered
- Note any post-trial motion filed, and the date it was decided
- Call an appellate lawyer with both dates in hand
- Don't wait for a transcript; the notice of appeal comes first
A notice of appeal is a short document. Filing it keeps the door open while you decide whether to go through it. Theodora can usually say within a day whether there is time and what it would take.