Also known as: pending appeals · appeal pending
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A period after a court enters a judgment during which a party has filed an appeal that has not yet been resolved. The judgment remains final and enforceable subject to the appeal. Certain actions such as remarriage under specified conditions or limited trial court consideration of motions may proceed during this period.
Pearl Porter obtains a dissolution decree from Peter Park after the court finds the marriage irretrievably broken. Peter appeals only the property division and does not challenge the dissolution finding. Pearl remarries six weeks later while the appeal remains pending because the statute permits either party to remarry once the dissolution provision becomes final.
Preston Pratt, a landlord, wins an eviction judgment against tenant Penelope Price. Penelope posts a bond and appeals. The appellate court imposes the state double-rent penalty on the bond because the appeal is unsuccessful and the statute requires the extra amount to cover rents accruing during the pending appeal.
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Perry Pratt is held in custody after a probable-cause determination. He appeals the detention order. While the appeal is pending the district court may not release him without satisfying the appellate court's standards because jurisdiction over the custody issue has shifted during the pending appeal.
Patricia Patel, a parent, obtains an injunction barring a school prayer statute. The state appeals. While the appeal is pending the injunction remains in effect and the school district must continue to comply because the appellate court has not stayed or vacated the order.
Pacific Bank loses a tort judgment and posts a bond to stay execution pending appeal. The prevailing party seeks a state mandatory affirmance penalty. The federal appellate court refuses to apply the penalty because federal procedural rules govern stays pending appeal and preempt the state statute.
Prime Logistics challenges a state trucking statute in federal court and obtains an injunction. The state appeals. While the appeal is pending the injunction continues to block enforcement because the appellate court has not yet decided whether to stay the order.
No. The district court may receive and consider the motion but may not actually grant a new trial until the court of appeals remands the case. The pending appeal shifts jurisdiction to the appellate court and prevents the trial court from altering the judgment.
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The court should consider the motion and, if inclined to grant relief, issue an indicative ruling stating that it would grant the motion if the appellate court remands. The court must then await the remand before entering an order granting a new trial.
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No. The decree is final when entered subject to the right of appeal. An appeal that does not challenge the finding that the marriage is irretrievably broken does not delay the finality of the dissolution provision and either party may remarry pending appeal.
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…States may retain the definition of marriage as a union of two people. Cf. Brown v. Buhman , 947 F. Supp. 2d 1170 (Utah 2013), appeal pending, No. 14-4117 (CA10). Although the majority randomly inserts the adjective “two” in various places, it offers no reason at all why the two-person element of the core definition of marriage…