Writ Guru shares tips!

Pablo Drobny, writ guru extraordinaire (having done writs in the 2d District for over 36 years!), is now with the California Appellate Law Group. His On Appeals column in The Recorder is Diligent Trial Attorneys Know How to Prepare for Possible Appellate Writ Petitions. His top tips?

• Ask for a CCP 166.1 indication
• Ensure an adequate record is preserved (i.e., the order, the operative complaint and answer, the relevant papers leading to the ruling; the transcript of proceedings)
• Don't wait for a transcript; file the writ with a summary of the proceedings and explanation for why you don't have a transcript (yet)
• Know the relevant deadline, statutory or common law; the general rule for laches is 60 days
• Get help from an appellate specialist.

"the diligent trial attorney will consider involving an appellate lawyer before the critical motion is even heard. Appellate writ practice has developed over time by custom and lore, and as a result success seems to owe as much to art as to science. Experts tend to know about these things and can play a critical role in appellate writ victory."

Also of interest: from 2/6 see this "rogue juror" opinion here.

And today's DJ, USC law student Eric Woff writes: Increased access to justice at the trial level should be matched at the appellate level.

With its newly-passed budget, California is taking steps to give low income residents greater access to the trial courts. But those who want to appeal a trial court decision may be disappointed.