Intermediate state appellate courts render final decisions in most appealed cases

Evidence

Thirty-nine states have also created intermediate courts of appeals; that is, first-level appellate courts below the state supreme court. These courts focus on error correction, reviewing trial court rulings to ensure that judges did not make errors in procedure or in the interpretation of the law that would warrant reversal of their decisions. Because all litigants under American law are entitled to one appeal, these first-level appellate courts, like the federal courts of appeals, exercise no discretion over the appeals they hear. If an appeal is properly filed, they must review the lower court’s decision. Decisions of an intermediate court of appeals typically can be appealed to the state supreme court, though that court may have some control over what decisions it reviews. In practice, intermediate courts of appeals render the final decision in most cases that come before them. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 314

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines error-correction function and the mandatory jurisdiction of intermediate appellate courts, contrasted with discretionary supreme-court review.
• XREF: connects to: Few appealed cases succeed past the first-level appellate courts — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 893; Lower appellate courts decide most appeals on briefs rather than oral argument — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1596; Trials and appeals are rare exceptions to routine case disposition in U.S. courts — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1601 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Trials and appeals are rare exceptions to routine case disposition in U.S. courts #expands (0.80) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1601
• Automatic appellate rights make appeals courts primarily error-correcting bodies. #qualifies (0.80) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 288
• Lower appellate courts decide most appeals on briefs rather than oral argument #expands (0.78) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1596
• First-level appellate courts must hear all appeals brought before them #corroborates (0.75) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1585