James M Beck

August 18, 2016 | The Legal Intelligencer

Any appellate practitioner with a practice that includes representing amicus curiae parties in the Pennsylvania appellate courts needs to know about the significant amendments to Pa. R.A.P. 531 that will become effective on Oct. 1. Not too long ago—before 1992—amicus curiae briefs in Pennsylvania were essentially unlimited, with a 70-page limit. That year saw the current limits on amicus curiae submissions introduced as part of the court system's overall conversion to a modern (post-word-processing) system of word counts, rather than page limitations.

By James M. Beck

11 minute read

June 04, 2016 | The Legal Intelligencer

As an appellate lawyer in a civil action, one does not wish to be any closer to "nunc pro tunc"—literally "now for then" in legal Latin—than reading this article. Nonetheless, the world is not perfect, and occasionally something happens that one wishes had not. This article examines situations in which an appellate party can seek nunc pro tunc, to fix something retroactively, and, conversely, when the problem is irretrievable.

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

February 26, 2016 | The Legal Intelligencer

The last thing an appellate lawyer wants to do is accidentally waive something. A waiver can be a particularly knotty issue where rules or case law provides an opportunity to take an interlocutory appeal of a particular issue or ruling. If an interlocutory appeal is procedurally available, does foregoing that appeal constitute a waiver of the appealable issue? Fortunately, the changes to Pa. R.A.P. 311 that become effective in April, will clarify when a waiver exists and, conversely, when an interlocutory appeal can be passed up without prejudicing a party's ability to pursue the issue on final appeal, as in In Re: Order Amending Rule 311, 341, and 904 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure, No. 258 APR Dkt. (Pa. Dec. 14, 2015).

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

November 17, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

Most appellate counsel would not wish to be on the receiving end of a footnote like this one in Treasure Lake Property Owners v. Meyer, 832 A.2d 477 (2003):

By James M. Beck

7 minute read

November 16, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

Most appellate counsel would not wish to be on the receiving end of a footnote like this one in Treasure Lake Property Owners v. Meyer, 832 A.2d 477 (2003):

By James M. Beck

7 minute read

August 25, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

The biggest case of a lawyer's career is now on appeal. Maybe it involves a month-long trial. Maybe it involves a certified class action. Maybe it involves summary judgment after multiple Grady/Frye motions. Whatever the reason, both parties are staring at a record well in excess of 10,000 pages. What to do?

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

August 24, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

The biggest case of a lawyer's career is now on appeal. Maybe it involves a month-long trial. Maybe it involves a certified class action. Maybe it involves summary judgment after multiple . Whatever the reason, both parties are staring at a record well in excess of 10,000 pages. What to do?

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

May 12, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

Every attorney who regularly handles appeals will encounter this question sooner or later: What is the effect of a legally or factually unsupportable theory, when that theory was submitted to a jury along with one or more other, valid liability theories, and the jury returns a general verdict finding liability?

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

May 11, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

Every attorney who regularly handles appeals will encounter this question sooner or later: What is the effect of a legally or factually unsupportable theory, when that theory was submitted to a jury along with one or more other, valid liability theories, and the jury returns a general verdict finding liability?

By James M. Beck

6 minute read

February 24, 2015 | The Legal Intelligencer

Sooner or later, any appellate practitioner will be faced with the need to advocate, or oppose, adoption of a novel cause of action, theory of liability or affirmative defense. In both the Pennsylvania and federal court systems, appellate courts profess a reluctance to entertain novel arguments, sometimes even as they are, in fact, doing so.

By James M. Beck

7 minute read