At Waugh PLLC, our appeals attorney practice includes representing individual and business clients in appellate actions in all Florida state and federal courts, and in federal courts outside Florida. Our appeals attorney handles both final and nonfinal orders of lower courts.

Our attorneys take great pride in the fact that many of our Waugh PLLC clients come to us through referrals of previous or current clients and other attorneys. The confidence and trust of our clients and professional colleagues attest to the exceptional quality of our legal services, as well as to our emphasis on providing the highest attainable level of client service in every matter.

We handle appeals arising in our litigation for existing clients, as well as for new clients seeking an experienced appellate attorney. We welcome inquiries from other attorneys about our appellate practice.

Appeals Attorney Appellate Experience Makes All the Difference

To an individual who does not work in the legal profession, it may seem like it doesn’t matter what an experience a lawyer has when it comes to filing and arguing an appeal. The truth is that appellate work is vastly different from litigation, trial work, and transactional work.

An appeals attorney handling an appeal has just two chances to persuade an appellate judge or panel about the merits of the case: in the written briefs and at the oral argument. In authoring the brief, the lawyer must excel in researching the law and analyzing the record from the lower court. The ability to write cogently and powerfully is also essential. An appeal requires a completely different set of lawyering skills, as well as in-depth knowledge about how appellate courts decide cases. No one understands that better than attorney Christian Waugh, who has a decade of extensive transactional, litigation, trial, and appellate experience.

At oral argument, the appellate lawyer needs not only the skill to speak well but also the discipline and ability to stay focused on important points and avoid becoming flustered or disoriented when interrupted by the judges (which inevitably happens). Presenting an effective oral argument requires hours and hours (and even days and days) of preparation. The lawyer must have full command of every case cited in the brief and be thoroughly familiar with all the facts on the record in the court below. That requires painstaking study and assimilation.

All these skills are distinctly different from the skills a lawyer uses in transactional work and litigation. Developing strong appellate skills requires years of dedication to learning the art of handling appeals, as well as having a comprehensive understanding of what appellate judges care about when they decide a case. There are intellectual aspects to appellate work that simply do not exist in other lawyerly endeavors.

Our Appellate Experience & Approach at Waugh PLLC

Throughout his decade of legal practice, appeals attorney, Christian Waugh has devoted substantial time to appellate matters. He has the necessary skills and knowledge. He loves to research and write. Analyzing the facts in a record to find those that can support an appeal is one of his great strengths.

When it comes to preparing for oral argument of a case, Christian takes an approach akin to that of a performing artist, meticulously preparing to ensure his command of the law and facts of the case. That careful, thorough preparation enables him to stay fully focused on emphasizing the strengths of the case when he stands before the appellate judge or panel.

Court Appeals in the State of Florida

Florida has a complex court system. Appeals occur at all levels above the trial court level. At Waugh PLLC, our attorneys represent clients in final and interlocutory (nonfinal) appeals in all courts throughout the state, including:

• The Supreme Court of Florida, the state’s highest court
• The five District Courts of Appeal, located in Tallahassee, Lakeland, Miami, West Palm Beach, and Daytona Beach
• The 20 Florida Circuit Courts, which hear appeals from county courts

Our appellate experience and representation span all the state courts in Florida. Our appeals work also encompasses the full range of substantive areas of practice at the firm.

Federal Court Appeals

Appeals attorney Christian Waugh is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, which has jurisdiction over federal appeals from the United States District Courts in Florida.

Like our Florida state appellate work, our federal appeals cases include a broad range of substantive areas. They also include appeals from final and nonfinal orders.