![\"moot-court_trimmed\"](\"http:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/moot-court.jpg\" "\\"moot-court_trimmed\\"")
Does appellate oral argument still matter?\u00a0 In some courts with exceptionally heavy caseloads, such as the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, oral argument is vanishingly rare.\u00a0 But even in courts that regularly hold oral argument, some observers claim that it has devolved into a dog-and-pony show unlikely to move judges who have already reached unspoken decisions based on often-voluminous briefing.<\/p>\n
It may surprise some practitioners to learn that certain appellate courts have even taken to issuing \u201ctentative\u201d opinions prior<\/em> to oral argument.\u00a0 Certain branches of the California appellate courts have been among the leaders in this regard; the web page for the 4th<\/sup> District, 2nd<\/sup> Division claims that \u201cthe justices do not sense that their deliberations are any less objective than before the tentative opinion program began\u201d and that \u201ccounsel almost unanimously praise the program.\u201d<\/p>\n Proponents of the practice contend that it has several distinct advantages.\u00a0 According to the California court\u2019s website, many parties simply agree to cancel oral argument after seeing the tentative opinion.\u00a0 Even if oral argument proceeds, it is much more focused because counsel are well aware of how the judges are thinking about the case and which issues are most important.\u00a0 Less frequently, counsel may even notice errors in the tentative opinion\u2019s discussion of the underlying law or facts, and use the oral argument to correct them.<\/p>\n If the first point is true, the practice seemingly amounts to suppression of oral arguments that would otherwise occur.\u00a0 I am sympathetic to but not persuaded by the accompanying claim that this outcome may save time for the courts and money for the litigants.\u00a0 I still believe there is significant value in oral argument.\u00a0 Some of the reasons are obvious.\u00a0 In a few cases, the panel really will be on the knife\u2019s edge of indecision because the case is so close. \u00a0In other cases, the argument allows the litigants to correct any misimpressions of the governing facts or law made by harried judges or law clerks before<\/em> they are set in ink.\u00a0 If an opinion, however tentative, has already been issued, it seems to me that judges will be more defensive about its perceived weak points.<\/p>\n Oral argument also allows the panel to \u201cargue\u201d to one another by asking leading questions and thus ensuring that certain points will be stressed to their colleagues.\u00a0 Speaking as a former law clerk on an appellate court, I think litigants should not underestimate the importance of this point.\u00a0 Advocates always ready themselves for the hard questions, but don\u2019t do enough to run with \u201csoftball\u201d questions that will almost inevitably come.\u00a0\u00a0 In the very close cases, members of the panel often are forced to become advocates for one side or the other in the judicial conference room.<\/p>\n Finally, I think there is an intrinsic and cathartic value in telling the appellate court why the lower court got it wrong.\u00a0 In my experience, this holds true both for lawyers (directly) and the clients they represent (vicariously).\u00a0 When citizens see that the nation\u2019s highest courts allow litigants to tell their stories and correct mistakes, it can provide a much-needed boost to public confidence in the judiciary and the judicial system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Does appellate oral argument still matter?\u00a0 In some courts with exceptionally heavy caseloads, such as the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, oral argument is vanishingly rare.\u00a0 But even in courts that regularly hold oral argument, some observers claim that it has devolved into a dog-and-pony show unlikely to move judges who have already reached unspoken decisions 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