Also known as: interlocutory appeal · interlocutory appellate review · interlocutory review
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An exception to the final judgment rule that permits immediate appellate review of certain nonfinal orders. The exception applies when an order conclusively determines a disputed question, resolves an important issue completely separate from the merits, and is effectively unreviewable on appeal from a final judgment.
ValleyCare Health System moved in a malpractice class action to require plaintiffs to post a statutory security bond protecting against expert fees. The district court denied the motion outright. ValleyCare filed a notice of appeal the same day. The court of appeals accepted jurisdiction because the denial met the three conditions for immediate review of a collateral order.
A. Ernest Fitzgerald sued former President Richard Nixon for damages arising from his dismissal from federal employment. Nixon asserted absolute immunity from suit. The district court rejected the immunity defense on summary judgment. Nixon took an immediate appeal, which proceeded because the claimed right would be lost if review waited until after trial.
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Exxon Mobil customers filed a class action in federal court asserting claims that individually fell below the amount-in-controversy threshold. The district court exercised supplemental jurisdiction over those claims. Exxon Mobil appealed the jurisdictional decision before final judgment. The court of appeals heard the appeal because the ruling conclusively settled a threshold issue separate from the underlying contract claims.
Mercury Construction sued Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital for breach of a construction contract containing an arbitration clause. The district court stayed the federal action pending resolution of related state proceedings. Mercury appealed the stay order at once. The court of appeals exercised jurisdiction because the order effectively denied a contractual right to arbitration that could not be restored after final judgment.
Northern Pipeline sued Marathon Pipe Line in bankruptcy court for breach of contract. Marathon moved to dismiss, arguing the bankruptcy judge lacked constitutional authority to decide the state-law claim. The district court denied the motion. Marathon pursued an immediate appeal because the order finally resolved a structural question about judicial power that would be lost once the case proceeded to judgment.
The United States District Court ordered Vice President Cheney to produce documents in a civil suit concerning the National Energy Policy Development Group. Cheney asserted executive privilege and sought immediate review of the discovery order. The Supreme Court accepted the appeal because the asserted privilege would be irretrievably compromised if review were postponed until after final judgment.
The order must conclusively determine the disputed question. It must resolve an important issue completely separate from the merits. It must be effectively unreviewable on appeal from a final judgment.
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The denial conclusively resolves the officials' claimed right not to stand trial. That right is separate from the merits of the underlying excessive-force claim. The protection would be lost once the burdens of trial begin, rendering later review ineffective.
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The denial conclusively resolves the defendant's claimed right to cost protection. The bond issue stands apart from whether malpractice occurred. The statutory protection would be lost forever if the defendant had to defend the suit without security and later prevailed.
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…diversity jurisdiction. After a unanimous jury verdict in favor of the plaintiffs, the District Court certified the case for interlocutory review, asking whether it had properly exercised § 1367 supplemental jurisdiction over the claims of class members who did not meet the jurisdictional minimum amount in controversy. The Court of…