Appeals we may take
We handle appeals to the Court of Appeals of Virginia, the Supreme Court of Virginia, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and we often work alongside trial lawyers. We take a limited number of appeals, so we ask everyone to answer the questions below before we schedule a consultation.
If your deadline is within the next few days, call us now at (804) 783-2000 instead of waiting for a reply to this form.
Preliminary inquiry only — no attorney-client relationship
Completing a questionnaire, submitting a form, calling, or emailing the firm is a preliminary inquiry. It does not create an attorney-client relationship. Thomas H. Roberts & Associates, PC does not represent you unless and until the firm agrees to do so in a written, signed fee agreement.
Consistent with Rule 1.18 of the Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct, we treat the information you provide in a preliminary inquiry as confidential, and we will not use or reveal it except as those Rules permit. That confidentiality does not make you our client, does not mean we have agreed to take your matter, and does not mean the firm is protecting any deadline for you. You alone remain responsible for every statute of limitations, notice requirement, and filing deadline until the firm has agreed to represent you in a written, signed fee agreement.
So that we can first check for conflicts of interest, please share only the basic facts needed to evaluate your matter, and do not send confidential information or documents until we have spoken.
Appeals we look for
- Civil rights, personal injury, and other civil judgments from Virginia circuit courts and federal district courts
- Criminal convictions where a legal error was preserved at trial
- Appeals where trial counsel wants an appellate lawyer to assist or take over
- Freedom of Information Act, administrative, and professional license appeals
Appeals we usually can't take
- Cases where the deadline to note the appeal has already passed
- Appeals from courts outside Virginia (other than the Fourth Circuit)
- Appeals that only ask the court to weigh the evidence differently
- Matters where you need a lawyer to work only for a percentage of any recovery
Every case is different, and these are general guides, not rules. If you are unsure, complete the questions and we will review them. Submitting this form does not make you our client and does not file an appeal or extend any deadline.
