Appellate court facts for kids

This picture shows how courts are organized.

An appeals court, also called an appellate court, is a special kind of court that checks decisions made by other courts. Imagine if you played a game and thought the referee made a wrong call. An appeals court is like a higher referee that reviews if the first referee followed all the rules. They don't usually re-do the whole game; they just look at how the rules were applied.

What is an Appeals Court?

An appeals court looks at cases that have already been decided by a lower court. This lower court is often called a trial court. People can ask an appeals court to review a decision if they believe there was a mistake in how the law was used or how the trial happened.

How Courts Are Organized

Most countries have different levels of courts.

• Trial Courts: These are the first courts where cases begin. They listen to people, look at evidence, and decide what happened.
• Appeals Courts: These courts are in the middle. They review decisions from the trial courts. They check if the trial was fair and if the law was applied correctly.
• Supreme Court: This is usually the highest court in a country or region. It reviews decisions from the appeals courts. Its decisions are usually final.

What Appeals Courts Do

Appeals courts do not usually hear new evidence or new witnesses. Instead, they look at the records from the trial court. They read what happened and what decisions were made. Their main job is to decide if the trial court followed the law correctly.

If an appeals court finds a mistake, they might:

• Affirm the decision: This means they agree with the lower court's decision.
• Reverse the decision: This means they disagree and change the lower court's decision.
• Remand the case: This means they send the case back to the lower court to fix a mistake or try it again.

The rules for appeals courts can be different in various places. But their main goal is to make sure that justice is fair and that laws are used correctly.

Images for kids

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  The High Court of Australia, the highest appellate court in Australia

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  The Helsinki Court of Appeal (Helsingin hovioikeus), an intermediate appellate court in Finland

See also

In Spanish: Tribunal de apelación para niños