Whose appeal is this, anyway?

Today's DJ has Lawyer drops appeal in Buchalter fraud case -- A deal struck just before oral argument ends a rare civil RICO case filed 10 years ago.

[Appellant's counsel] "told a 4th District Court of Appeal panel via telephone he'd "reached a settlement on the courthouse steps, as they say," ending a 10-year saga just as oral argument was to begin." .... Despite the settlement, Justice Eileen C. Moore told Barnes and Greenberg the court "may or may not" issue an opinion. "The fact that you told us that you settled the case does not change what could happen in the Court of Appeal," Moore said.

This precise situation is the topic of this month's Exceptionally Appealing column (DJ April 7, 2020), Cant' Stop, Won't Stop.