What decisions may a court render in an appeal?
Appeals address prejudicial defects in the judicial system, and if the appellate court upon reviewing the appeal finds no legal defect, the court will affirm the judgment, meaning that the ruling from the trial court stands. If the appellate court finds a defect, then it may either modify the ruling to correct the defect, or reverse part of or the whole decision. It may also remand the case to the lower court for further legal proceedings to remedy the defect, which could basically result in a new trial. If the court finds a legal defect in appellate procedure on the part of the appeals lawyer, it may dismiss the appeal without review, which would in effect, reaffirm the lower trial court’s judgment.
