Appellate Law

Rehearing Denied Where Party Merely Repeated Principal Arguments

By Craig N. Rosler

The Court of Civil Appeals denied a rehearing where the appellant merely repeated the arguments he had made in his principal submissions. G.P. v. Houston County Dept. of Human Resources, No. 2080591 (Ala. Civ. App. Jan. 29, 2010).

In asking for a rehearing, an appellant father 'argue[d] again that the trial court erred in terminating his parental rights.' More to the point, he merely restated his earlier arguments. This did not justify a rehearing. The appellate court had reviewed the father's application for rehearing 'thoroughly,' and decided:

[W]e are convinced that the father merely makes the same arguments that he advanced in his brief on original submission; those arguments have already been addressed thoroughly and correctly in our opinion on original submission. For this reason, we overrule his application for rehearing.

The court reminded readers by parenthetical citation that rehearings are not opportunities for 'simply an earnest reiteration of the appellant's original brief.'
 

Full post as published by Alabama Appellate Watch on February 11, 2010 (boomark / email).