Appeal

Appeal, in law, request to a higher court to reverse the decision made by a lower court. The party who won the decision in the lower court is called the appellee; the party appealing the decision is called the appellant. Except in unusual cases, the appellate court may only review questions relating to law and may not disturb the factual determinations of the lower court. The right of appeal is derived from English law, in which an appeal was obtained by a writ of error. Most states of the U.S., however, use the notice of appeal to initiate appellate action. If an appeal is not undertaken within a limited period usually prescribed by statute, the original decision becomes final and binding on the parties.

The right of appeal provides the opportunity to have an involved legal question given more deliberate and careful study than is possible in the lower courts. Whereas the decision of a lower court is usually rendered by a single judge, in an appellate court several judges hear the case and bring their views to bear on the same problem. The decision is usually available in printed form and indicates the basis for the court's conclusions. These judgments are often cited as precedents in future cases. For detailed information on appeals, see Courts; Courts of Appeals; Courts in the United States.