The Appellate Record : Texas Appellate Lawyer & Attorney Kendall Gray for Fifth Circuit & Supreme Court Appeals

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Just a heads up, today, that if you take a look at "This Week in Texas Lawyer," you will see a familiar blogger, complete with bow tie.

The Texas Lawyer published the first in a series of articles I will be doing on nuts and bolts in appellate practice for Texas practitioners.  The first, "Pick Me!" is about how to get the attention of the Supreme Court of Texas when you've been done wrong by the Court of Appeals.

There may be some things you had not thought of, but the summary of the practice tips comes down to emphasizing:

• which court of appeals the high court should review;

• how much is at stake for these parties or others;

• the potential for the case to impact statewide matters, such as those governed by the same contractual language or the same statute; and

• the ease and effectiveness of the court's ability to grant complete relief by rendering judgment.

It's a fun read (patting myself on the back) so why not read the whole article.

And sure, it's important to be able to look at your court of appeals opinion and tell whether or not you've got a Supreme Court case on your hands. But it may be even more important to be able to see Supreme Court issues right from the start in order to pursue and preserve them for argument five years from now in a court that may change between now and then.

As I've said before, be sure and call your friendly neighborhood appellate law nerd early and often. The case you save may be your own.