Chris McFadden
Candidate for Judge, Court of Appeals of Georgia in 2010
...he wrote the book on Georgia appeals!
Publications
Georgia Appellate Practice with Forms, 2009-2010 Edition (West)
Publisher’s description: “This title contains a survey of the statutes and court rules governing appellate practice, with particular emphasis on appeals from administrative agencies, state courts, probate courts, and other courts of limited jurisdiction. Preservation of error, the finality requirement, and the relationship between post-judgment motions and appeals are given complete treatment. The authors mix case law and theory with practical information and advice on preparing, filing, and arguing civil and criminal appeals.”
Other Publications
Partisan Election Counters Rule of Law 
November 29, 2006
First published in the November 29, 2006 Daily Report, Atlanta's newspaper for legal affairs, this op-ed argues against partisan judicial elections and examines a proposal to expand the Supreme Court.
Truth, Justice, All That Stuff
November 2006
“‘Does he still stand for truth, justice, all that stuff?’ asked Perry White in last summer’s Superman Returns. That latest iteration of the famous declaration cleverly mixes worldly skepticism and childlike hope. It is with the same mix of skepticism and hope that litigants approach the courts. By and large, Georgia’s courts are committed to fulfilling the hope.”
The Exoneration of Robert Clark
June 16, 2006
Robert Clark was wrongfully convicted of rape. DNA evidence exonerated him twenty-one years later. Chris McFadden assisted the Innocence Project with Clark’s case. In this essay, which was first published on June 16, 2006 in the Daily Report, Atlanta’s newspaper for legal affairs, McFadden tells Clark’s story, describes his own role in Clark’s case and in the cases of two other people who were wrongfully convicted, and argues that certain lessons should be drawn from the scores of DNA exonerations that have taken place around the country.
"Physical Precedent" Under Court of Appeals Rule
33(a)
January 2003
In the Appellate Review, the newsletter of the Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Georgia, Chris McFadden participates in a discussion about a fine point of Georgia appellate procedure with Attorneys Jim Bonner and Charles Cork. They discuss the rule that decisions of three-judge panels of the Court of Appeals are binding precedent for future cases only if all three judges fully concur. McFadden argues that this rule provides an important check and balance.
The Court of Appeals Should Be Further Expanded
April 2002
In the The Appellate Review, the newsletter of the Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Georgia, Chris McFadden advocates an expansion of the Court of Appeals, which may be the busiest court of its kind in the nation.
Civil Liberties and Terrorism
September 2001
In a reprint from The Appellate Review, the newsletter of the Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Georgia, Chris McFadden writes, “Civil liberties are most crucial when they are least convenient and when the persons benefiting from them are least admirable.”
PDF files
require a free reader. You can download a copy by clicking the image at
the right.