BERMUDA Law and Practice Contributed by: Michael Hanson, Keith Robinson, Sam Stevens and Kyle Masters, Carey Olsen Bermuda Limited
10.3 Procedure for Taking an Appeal Appeals from the Supreme Court to the Court of Appeal are by notice of motion accompanied by an affidavit that exhibits draft grounds of appeal. The notice of appeal shall be signed by the appellant and shall also set out the nature of the relief sought, names and addresses of par- ties affected, and specify whether the appeal concerns the entire decision or only a part of it. In the case of an interim or interlocutory order of the Supreme Court, an application for leave must be made to the Supreme Court within 14 days of the date of the order and, if refused, within seven days to the Court of Appeal. In the case of a final judgment/order, where leave is not required, a party has six weeks from the date on which the judgment/order was perfected to appeal. 10.4 Issues Considered by the Appeal Court at an Appeal On appeal, the court is normally limited to con- sidering the evidence that was before the lower court. An appeal is a review of the lower court’s decision. A notable exception are appeals from statutory tribunals to the Supreme Court, which are usually conducted by way of a rehearing. If a decision is made by the trial judge exercising their lawful discretion, an appellant is required to show that the exercise of that discretion was unreasonable in order to disturb a ruling on such a basis. The appellate court will consider arguments that the lower court judge took into account something that they should not have, or failed to take into account something that they ought to have when considering an appeal on this basis.
The registration of a foreign judgment and the enforcement under common law can both be subject to challenge. 10. Appeal 10.1 Levels of Appeal or Review to a Litigation Appeals of judgments of the Magistrates’ Court may be made to the Supreme Court. Supreme Court decisions can be appealed to the Court of Appeal. Appeals from the Court of Appeal can be made to His Majesty’s Order in Council (the Privy Council): • at the discretion of the Court of Appeal where the issues in the appeal are of significant public importance; or • as of right where the amount in dispute exceeds BMD12,000 or the appeal concerns fundamental rights under Section 15 of the Bermuda Constitution Order 1968. 10.2 Rules Concerning Appeals of Judgments A party to civil proceedings dissatisfied with a judgment has the right to appeal final orders without leave. An appeal against interlocutory or interim orders requires that the party wishing to appeal those matters first seek the leave of the lower court and, if refused, then make a renewed application to the higher court. The test for permission for leave to appeal is whether the appeal has a real prospect of suc- cess or if there is some other compelling reason for the appeal to be heard.
137 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook