APPEALS

A Past Chair of the Appellate Court Rules Committee and Past Chair of the Appellate Practice Section of The Florida Bar, Shea follows the tradition of her mentors believing in the mastery of the appellate lawyer's art. Appellate advocacy requires the skills of a legal craftsman. The classic appellate lawyer develops over time a depth of legal philosophy, research, advocacy, and writing skills.  Shea is passionate about individual rights and the need for institutional and government consistency and equality not only in the outcome of cases, but in the appellate process itself.  The best written briefs become law, not just for the case at hand, but as a developing fabric of legal precedent for future generations.   No case is determined in a void, but is part of a body of case law.  The writer of an appellate argument must consider the case before the court as well as the purpose of the law and rules applied.  The lawyer has a responsibility to the client and to the court and society as well.  The United States Constitution and Florida Constitutions, statutes, rules, and case law must all be understood and applied to the unique facts and procedure which resulted in the trial court's decision.  The case must be reviewed for error not only of the trial judge but for errors of trial counsel as well.  All must be presented under the appropriate standards of appellate review that decide the case.  Appellate representation requires skill preparing and reviewing the record on appeal and determining which errors merit presentation to the appellate court.  The skilled appellate lawyer must be able to organize, research, analyze, write and advocate in appellate courts.  Siobhan Helene Shea has experience in appeals from civil and criminal cases, including original proceedings in the appellate courts.  Since 1991 Shea has represented clients in state and federal courts throughout Florida consistent with her continued demand for integrity, individual rights, and the reasoned development of the law.