The law office of Andrew R. Lynch, P.C. is a trial focused law firm  In some cases the courts get it wrong.  When the Judge makes a mistake you have a right to challenge the court through an appeal.  Our office has experience handling criminal cases in both the Supreme Court of Georgia and Georgia’s Court of Appeals.   

Motion for New Trial

A Motion for New Trial must be filed within a short time after sentencing.  The appellate lawyer will review the transcript of the trial, carefully looking for any errors that can be the basis for convincing the trial judge to grant a new trial or an appellate court to overturn the conviction.

Direct Appeal

If the trial judge does not grant a new trial, the next step is to file a Notice of Appeal.  The appellate lawyer will craft a brief to convince the appellate court that the errors that occurred at the trial require a reversal of the client’s conviction.  Not all error that happens in a trial results in a reversal.  Many times, the appellate courts find that the error was “harmless,” that the evidence presented at trial was “overwhelming,” and that the conviction will stand.  Some appeals challenge the current state of the law and ask the appellate courts to reverse their prior interpretations of statutes and case law.

For most criminal convictions, the initial appeal will be to the Georgia Court of Appeals.  If the conviction is for murder or the appeal involves a constitutional challenge, the intial appeal will go directly to the Georgia Supreme Court.

Habeas Corpus

Even if your initial appeal is unsuccessful, you still have another chance to challenge your criminal conviction.  A writ of habeas corpus raises constitutional challenges to your conviction.  You can file a habeas corpus challenge in state court or federal court.  In state court, you are limited to new issues that have not already been litigated in an initial appeal.  In federal court, the opposite is true: you are generally limited to issues that the state courts have already considered.

If you or your loved one has been convicted and would like to learn more about challenging the court’s ruling by appeal contact Andrew R. Lynch, P.C.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remember if you have been charged with a crime,
call Andrew R. Lynch today at (404) 373-7735.