Can You Appeal A Decision In A Personal Injury Case To A Higher Court?

by Friedman & Ranzenhofer, PC on July 15, 2015

in Buffalo Injury Questions and Answers

When someone pursuing a personal injury lawsuit does not agree with a ruling from a judge or jury regarding their case, it may be possible to appeal that ruling to a higher court.

Appeals of decisions in Buffalo area personal injury lawsuits will usually be made the Appellate Division Court for the Fourth Department in Rochester, New York.

While it may be possible to appeal a decision to the Appellate Division Court for the Fourth Department, determining whether to do so requires consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Very few lower court decisions are overturned on appeal. No one could be expected to agree with the judge or jury when a ruling is made against them, and the mere fact that the injured person does not agree with a decision is not a good reason to proceed with an appeal.

Instead, when arguing that a decision should be overturned, the injured person either must be able to point to some obvious error that was made in the application or interpretation of the law or must establish a clear abuse of discretion by the lower court that made the ruling.

If an injured person does successfully appeal, what happens afterwards largely depends on the nature of the issue that was appealed.

Under some circumstances, the Appellate Division Court for the Fourth Department will simply overrule the finding of the lower court.

In other cases, the matter may be returned to the lower court for further proceedings.

If you have been injured in an accident and need the help of an experienced personal injury lawyer, we would be happy to help you.

Please call us at 716-631-9999 for a free consultation.

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