Q: Will a judge's decision on a motion for reconsideration be part of an appeal review in California civil case?
I am a pro se plaintiff in a civil case in California. I filed a motion for reconsideration, and a hearing was scheduled before the judgment was entered. I understand it's at the judge's discretion to rule or not to rule on this motion before entering judgment. I want to know if the judge's decision to rule or not rule will be part of the review by the court of appeals if I decide to file an appeal later. The appeal has not been filed yet, and the hearing on the motion for reconsideration is pending.
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A:
Yes, a judge’s decision—or lack of decision—on a motion for reconsideration can be reviewed on appeal, but only under specific circumstances. If the judge rules on your motion, that ruling becomes part of the record and can be addressed in your appeal. If the judge doesn’t rule before entering judgment, and your motion was timely and properly filed, the fact that it wasn’t addressed could be noted in your appellate brief.
However, courts of appeal generally focus on whether the final judgment was legally correct. They don’t usually reverse a judgment just because a motion for reconsideration was denied or ignored—unless that failure affected your substantial rights. You’d need to show how the judge’s handling of the motion impacted the outcome of your case.
Since your motion is still pending and no judgment has been entered yet, keep track of all deadlines carefully. If judgment is entered before the motion is decided, you may still be able to raise issues from the motion in your appeal. Make sure you include the motion and any supporting documents in the appellate record. That way, the court of appeal can see the full picture, even if the trial court didn’t rule on everything.
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