Legal Question in Appeals and Writs in California

Re: we would like to appeal a case but ...

There are ways around it. Many of them have been discussed in the previous responses. I have 18 years experience in Appeal work. Call me directly at 16192223504.

Re: we would like to appeal a case but ...

An appeals bond is not a prerequisite to appealing the court's order or judgment, but is only a mechanism for avoiding enforcement during the pendency of the appeal. There are numerous ways to achieve that stay of enforcement; a bond is simply one mechanism for doing so. Further, a bond in a case such as this (from what I assume to be the facts of the case) is probably governed by Civ. Pro. section 917.4, which could allow the amount of the bond to be set at much less than 150% of the value of the property.

Without more information about the case, I cannot provide further advice. I would be happy to consult with you further. I am a certified appellate law specialist with 20 years of civil appeals experience. You can find out more about my practice at: www.lawyers.com/herbfox.

Re: we would like to appeal a case but ...

If you truly are destitute and unable to post the bond, you can ask the trial court to waive the requirement of a bond for that reason. If the trial court refuses, you can ask the appeals court to do the same thing. Many trial courts will not even contemplate such an action unless you first appeal, which by itself is costly. And, of course, you will have to pay a lawyer to ask the court to do this.

You can also appeal and not secure a stay of enforcement, and let the creditor take the property. If your appeal is successful, you may eventually have a judgment against the creditor that you can enforce in the normal way. Of course, by that time they may have sold the property, not have any money, etc.

Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.

Re: we would like to appeal a case but ...

As you seem to recognize, you can appeal the judgment even if you don't post a bond. A bond prevents the other side from executing on the judgment while the appeal progresses. The appeal itself can proceed without a bond, but your opponent would be able to execute on the judgment in the meantime.

There are several ways you may be able to prevent execution even without a bond. You may, for example, be able to post the title to your property if it is valuable enough. It is also possible to ask the court for a waiver of the bond requirement; such requests are sometimes granted where the appellant seems to have a meritorious case and where the bond requirement would prevent him from presenting that case to the Court of Appeal.

I will need to know more about your case and about your circumstances before I can say whether any of these alternatives is likely to work for you.

Please feel free to contact me directly if you want to discuss your options. I have been certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in appellate practice, and am one of only about 240 of California's 150,000+ attorneys with such a certification.

Re: we would like to appeal a case but ...

Even if you can't afford 150% of the judgment, you can still appeal the case (if you have grounds for appeal - I would need to know more). You could possibly move a trailer onto the vacant lot, establish residency, and file a declaration of homestead that would make a forced sale harder. But again, you haven't provided many facts and, of course, only errors of law are appealable.