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Don’t Lose Your Appeal Before It Begins: To successfully appeal a civil trial decision in Illinois, your trial attorney must properly preserve errors on the record. If an issue is not raised correctly with the trial court, the appellate court will consider it “forfeited” and will refuse to review it. Two of the most common procedural traps where appeals are lost involve pre-trial evidence rulings and post-trial motions. This guide explains how to protect your right to appeal by properly handling these critical trial stages.
The Trap of the “Motion in Limine“:
A motion in limine is a pre-trial tool used to stop the opposing side from introducing evidence or explicitly allowing you to present evidence. However, if the trial judge denies your request to keep the evidence out, that pre-trial ruling is only temporary and remains subject to reconsideration. To preserve the issue for your appeal, your attorney must be vigilant and formally object again during the trial at the exact moment the evidence is presented. If your legal team relies solely on the pre-trial denial and fails to make a contemporaneous objection during the trial, the appellate court will consider the issue forfeited.
The Final Step: Mandatory Post-Trial Motions
Preserving your right to appeal does not end when the jury delivers its verdict. In Illinois jury trials, a post-trial motion is absolutely mandatory. This motion gives the trial judge an opportunity to reassess their rulings without the pressure of an ongoing trial. Any specific error or issue that is not explicitly detailed in this post-trial motion is forfeited and cannot be raised in the appellate court. Furthermore, the motion must state the precise relief you are seeking, such as requesting a new trial. If a party fails to request a new trial in the post-trial motion, they cannot seek that relief on appeal.
Our Experience with Trial Preservation: In our civil appellate practice, we frequently see strong legal arguments lost because they were not properly preserved during the heat of trial. In one recent anonymized matter, trial counsel’s diligence in continually renewing objections to prejudicial evidence and meticulously detailing those errors in a post-trial motion allowed us to successfully overturn an adverse jury verdict on appeal.
Ready to Discuss Your Case? If you are preparing for a complex trial or considering an appeal, ensuring that every procedural step is meticulously followed is critical. Contact our office to schedule a consultation with our appellate team to discuss a strategy tailored to your situation.
By Humza Ahmed Ansari
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Disclaimer: Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The information provided in this post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice