court of appeals

noun phrase

variants often Court of Appeals

: a court hearing appeals from the decisions of lower courts

called also court of appeal

Examples of court of appeals in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After years of failing to get past the court of appeals, the Supreme Court agreed to hear both cases last July. — Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026

The court of appeal further ruled Guild had sufficiently alleged CCM had aided, and benefited from, then-Guild branch manager Christopher Flowers’s breach of his fiduciary duty to Guild. — Dan Eaton, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 June 2026

This decision was then reversed by a court of appeals, reinstating the state’s first lawsuit against the county. — Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 26 June 2026

More than a dozen national and international journalism associations wrote a joint letter calling on the government to withdraw its case after the men's convictions were upheld by a lower court of appeal in March. — ABC News, 24 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for court of appeals

• automobiles
• abeles
• conceals
• flywheels
• ideals
• newsreels
• ordeals
• repeals
• reveals
• beals
• deals
• eels

Legal Definition

court of appeals

often capitalized C&A

: a court hearing appeals from the decisions of lower courts: as

a

: an intermediate court of the U.S. federal judicial system

b

: a state appellate court

called also court of appeal

Note: Not all of the states have intermediate-level courts but of those that do, many are called the Court of Appeals or, in California and Louisiana, the Court of Appeal. In Hawaii, such a court is called the Intermediate Court of Appeals. In some states, appeals are divided between a court of criminal appeals and a court of civil appeals. In the District of Columbia, Maryland, and New York the court of last resort is called the Court of Appeals, and the intermediate court in Maryland is called the Court of Special Appeals. In West Virginia the court of last resort is called the Supreme Court of Appeals. In England the Court of Appeal is a division of the Supreme Court of Judicature.