Be Real: Most Appeals Do Not Bring Relief

Appellants generally don't get relief. Generally, a decent brief prepared from scratch-- that is, not already pre-written in part-- takes days to write. The records, especially the reporter's record, are expensive. Litigants generally can't afford to appeal just because they want to. We'll talk about standards of review later-- that is, the rule that tells you how bad an error needs to be before an appeals court will correct it. Suffice it to say that generally, appeals should not be pursued unless the error is clearly contrary to law and harmful, or the judgment is of such a nature that it is a mortal blow figuratively or literally to a party.