adjective
-
of or relating to appeals
-
(of a tribunal) having jurisdiction to review cases on appeal and to reverse decisions of inferior courts
Other Word Forms
- nonappellate adjective
Etymology
Origin of appellate
1720–30; < Latin appellātus called upon, named, appealed to (past participle of appellāre ), equivalent to ap- ap- 1 + pell- move, go + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
The adjective appellate is good for talking about the legal process for hearing appeals. An appellate court of law mainly deals with people attempting to reverse legal decisions. After a defendant has been convicted of a crime, she has the opportunity to appeal that decision, or apply to have her case re-tried. The judge who would hear this new case is called an appellate judge, and the court in which the case would be heard is an appellate court. The word appellate is a legal way to say "relating to appeals," and its root is the Latin appellare, "to address, appeal to, or summon."
Vocabulary lists containing appellate
The Judicial System
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Bill Parcells' Hall of Fame Induction Speech
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The Judicial Branch
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The appellate panel stated in its ruling that requiring the Department of War to prolong its use of Anthropic AI directly or through contractors "strikes us as a substantial judicial imposition on military operations."
From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026
“The present government and Mr. Smirnov are in complete agreement on his appellate case,” said David Chesnoff, a lawyer for Smirnov.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026
In theory, the majority might have felt it was proper for the lower court to take the first stab as a matter of appellate procedure.
From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026
There was one more turn of the screw: In responding to Torres Campos’ appellate filing, Bonar “doubled down,” Buchanan wrote.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026
The motions are almost never granted, but every now and then an appellate court finds that the atmosphere in a county had been so prejudicial that the trial should have been moved.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
