Appellate Law

Experience

Stafford Rosenbaum’s Appellate Team offers the breadth and depth of experience to provide outstanding appeals and consulting services for your case. Stafford Rosenbaum’s appellate attorneys have experience in all phases of appellate litigation. The Firm is one of only three firms to have won at least two-thirds of its cases before the Wisconsin Supreme Court since 2008. We have also represented clients before the U.S. Supreme Court, the Seventh Circuit, and the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, as well as several other federal and state appellate courts around the country on a wide range of substantive law.

Appellate litigation is both an art and a science. It is intricately related to trial litigation, but requires a distinct skill set. Success in the trial court is no guarantee of a favorable result on appeal. This is why courts and clients recognize the value added by experienced, talented, and focused appellate counsel.

Our appellate team brings value to our clients in several ways:

• Peerless practice in Wisconsin appellate courts and the Seventh Circuit.
• Breadth of experience in other state and federal appellate courts.
• Comprehensive knowledge of the intricacies of both trial and appellate practice and procedure.
• Strategic insight into identifying, preserving, and presenting key issues at every stage of pleadings, discovery, summary judgment, trial, and appeal.
• Exceptional writing that distills abstract legal doctrine and dense factual background into clear, cogent, and compelling briefs.

We provide effective representation at the appellate level, either to preserve a favorable verdict or to seek reversal of an adverse judgment. But our representation goes beyond that. Our experience as both trial and appellate litigators allows us to work with trial attorneys to help shape issues and facts that may seem unimportant at the trial level but could prove determinative on appeal. We are happy to discuss alternative fee arrangements for such consulting work.

Representative Cases

Supreme Court of the United States:

• Standard Fire Ins. Co. v. Knowles, 133 S. Ct. 1345 (2013) (amicus)
• Ryals v. United States, 130 S. Ct. 3461 (2010) (GVR)

Federal appellate courts:

• United States v. Philip Morris USA Inc., 801 F.3d 250 (D.C. Cir. 2015)
• O’Keefe v. Chisholm, 769 F.3d 936 (7th Cir. 2014) (amicus)
• United States v. Williams, 731 F.3d 678 (7th Cir. 2013)
• United States v. Ryals, 503 F. App’x 478 (7th Cir. 2013)
• Werth v. Bell, 692 F.3d 486 (6th Cir. 2012)
• United States v. Ryals, 407 F. App’x 958 (7th Cir 2011)

The Supreme Court of Wisconsin:

• Saddle Ridge Corp. v. Board of Rev. for Town of Pacific, 2010 WI 47, 325 Wis. 2d 29
• Hocking v. City of Dodgeville, 2009 WI 70, 318 Wis. 2d 681, 768 N.W. 2d 552
• Wiredata, Inc. v. Vill. of Sussex, 2008 WI 69, 310 Wis. 2d 397 (amicus)
• Frisch v. Henrichs, 304 Wis. 2d 1, 736 N.W.2d 85 (2007)
• Kristi L.M. v. Dennis E.M., 2007 WI 85, 302 Wis. 2d 185, 734 N.W.2d 375
• FAS LLC. v. Town of Bass Lake, 2007 WI 73, 294 Wis. 2d 697, 717 N.W.2d 853
• Jackson Cnty. v. Dep’t of Natural Res., 2006 WI 96, 293 Wis. 2d 497
• Racine Harley-Davidson, Inc. v. State Div. of Hr’gs & Appeals, 2006 WI 86, 292 Wis. 2d 549 (amicus)

Wisconsin Court of Appeals:

• Hoeft v. City of Beaver Dam, No. 2014AP2790 (Ct. App. 2015)
• Sears Holdings Corp. v. City of Eau Claire, No. 2014AP2618 (Ct. App. 2015)
• Shapiro v. Rick Vanden Heuvel CPA, S.C., No. 2014AP1338 (Ct. App. 2015) (unpublished)
• Chrysler Grp. LLC v. Labor & Ind. Rev. Comm’n, No. 2014AP83 (Ct. App. 2015) (amicus)
• Moreau v. Pepin, No. 2013AP826 (Ct. App. 2015)
• Fromm v. Village of Lake Delton, 2014 WI App 47, 354 Wis. 2d 30
• Lemke v. Lemke, 2012 WI App 96, 343 Wis. 2d 748, 820 N.W.2d 470
• Lake Beulah Management District v. Village of East Troy, 2011 WI 55
• Lake Beulah Management Dist. v. State Dept. of Natural Resources, 2011 WI 54.
• Isaacson v. Isaacson, No. 2010AP1072 (Ct. App. 2012)
• Village of Little Chute v. Outagamie Cnty. Drainage Bd., 2011 WI App. 114, 336 Wis. 2d 476
• Town of Stiles v. Stiles/Lena Drainage Dist., 2010 WI App 87, 327 Wis. 2d 491, 787 N.W. 2d 876
• Sabol v. Village of Mt. Pleasant Bd. of Rev., No. 2010AP2984 (Ct. App. 2010)
• Estate of Joseph E. Sabol v. Village of Mt. Pleasant Bd. of Rev., No. 2010AP1537 (Ct. App. 2010)

Other state appellate courts:

• Muhammad v. Muir, No. 2856 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 2012) (unpublished)
• Chultem v. Ticor Title Ins. Co., 927 N.E. 2d 289 (Ill. Ct. App. 2010)

Filed Under: Appellate Law