WHAT IF YOU DISAGREE WITH A FAMILY COURT’S DECISION?

Sometimes, despite a Mobile resident’s best efforts, a family law case may not go the way they had hoped. Unfortunately, domestic relations cases are often about a lot more than money. A bad result could mean, for instance, that a parent will not have visitation with a child.

Thankfully, a person who is not satisfied with a family court’s decision does have an option under Alabama law to appeal the decision. Appealing a decision does not mean that a person gets a do-over of what happened in front of the family court.

Instead, the person appealing asks the court, usually the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals, to review the family court’s decision for legal mistakes. The person seeking the appeal cannot introduce new evidence or information, but the person can argue that the family court, for example, misinterpreted the law or did not apply the law correctly to the facts at hand.

If there has been a mistake, then the judges may instruct the family court to have a new trial, consider additional information or even change its decision. The process of appealing a family law decision can be complicated. For one, it is not always a good idea to appeal a decision, no matter how unfair a person may think it is. Moreover, even if an appeal is the right course of action, there are several procedural steps that a Mobile resident will need to follow. Strict deadlines apply to some of these steps which, if not followed, can ruin a person’s chance to appeal. It is crucial to understand the applicable family law and procedural laws when it comes to appeals in Alabama.