- Legal EditorHenry Dahut, J.D.
Henry Dahut, J.D.
Attorney - Legal Publisher - Educator
Henry Dahut is a licensed California trial attorney. Over the course of his 30-plus years practicing law, Henry has represented and counseled countless clients in legal trouble.
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Once convicted of a crime in a federal district court, your lawyer may determine there are viable grounds to appeal the conviction based on a court error of law. There are precise procedural rules your lawyer must follow to secure your right to appeal.
This article provides a summary of a very complex legal procedure.
Post-Conviction Federal Criminal Process of Appeal
Under our federal criminal justice system, the term “post-conviction” refers to the legal process in which a criminal trial results in a defendant’s conviction. Upon the judicial filing of the conviction, the court will set a date for sentencing.
Once the court has officially sentenced the defendant, the convicted defendant has the legal right to challenge the conviction by a higher court.
Notice of appeal and formal order of transfer trial transcripts and records
The defendant must file notice of appeal within 10 days of conviction
Generally, the defendant’s lawyer must file a Notice of Appeal within ten days of the entry of the sentencing order. After the Notice of Appeal is filed, your lawyer must officially request the court reporter to prepare the trial records for transfer to the appellate court.
The court record includes all documents filed with the clerk’s office in the case and a verbatim transcript of all trial and other hearing testimony.
The defendant pays the costs of appeal
Production, copy costs, processing, and transfer costs are time-consuming and expensive
The defendant must pay the court reporter for the transfer cost and production of the trial transcript and records. When the transcript and records are produced, they must be filed with the district clerk and forwarded to the appropriate circuit court of appeals.
Shortly after receipt of the documents, the court of appeals will issue a briefing notice to the attorney for the appellant (previously referred to as the defendant).
The appellate brief
Written argument stating trial court made a reversible error
The appellant’s brief is a written document containing all requested relief and arguments supporting the relief requested. The appellant files the brief with the circuit court of appeals and serves a copy on the federal prosecutor’s office. The federal prosecutor has a limited number of days to submit their response upon receipt of the brief.
When the prosecutor submits their response, they are required by the Rules of Procedure to serve a copy upon the appellant’s counsel, and the appellant’s counsel has to offer a short reply brief.
The circuit court of appeals sets the case for oral argument
Case decided after oral argument
After receipt of all the briefs and records, the circuit court will set the matter for oral argument. The case will usually be decided within months after the oral argument. In other cases, the circuit court will decide the appeal based only on the briefs filed.
Writ of certiorari
Court of last resort
If the relief requested in the circuit court is not obtained, there is the option of proceeding to the Supreme Court on a writ of certiorari. However, it is crucial to understand that the Supreme Court reviews a tiny percentage of the cases presented for their review.
Writ of habeas corpus
A relic of the past
Once the appeals process has concluded, and both the appellate court and Supreme Court have denied the defendant’s requests for relief, the only remaining option for the defendant is to file a Habeas Corpus writ with the district court.
The writ of habeas corpus has deep traditional roots in old common law in which the writ of habeas corpus was used to bring a prisoner or detainee before a judicial tribunal to know the legal basis for his imprisonment.
The writ once protected prisoners who were held without charges or due process. The writ afforded the detainee protection against unlawful imprisonment. Today the writ serves little to no purpose. It is a relic from long ago when anyone could be held without cause or legal process.
Consult With Your Criminal Defense Lawyer immediately
Should you have specific questions or require additional information about your legal rights, consult with a verified Federal Appeals Lawyer as soon as possible.
