appeal Hear it!

appeal Definition

ap·peal (ə pēl′)

transitive verb

  1. to make a request to a higher court for the rehearing or review of (a case)
  2. Obsolete to accuse of a crime

Etymology: ME apelen < OFr apeler < L appellare, to accost, apply to, appeal; iterative < appellere, to prepare < ad-, to + pellere: see felt

intransitive verb

  1. to appeal a law case to a higher court
  2. to make an urgent request (to a person for help, sympathy, etc.)
  3. to resort or turn (to) for decision, justification, etc. to appeal to logic
  4. to be attractive, interesting, etc.; arouse a favorable response her argument appealed to me

noun

  1. a call upon some authority or person for a decision, opinion, etc.
  2. an urgent request for help, sympathy, etc.
  3. a quality in a person or thing that arouses interest, sympathy, desire, etc.; attraction
  4. Obsolete an accusation
  5. Law
    1. the transference of a case to a higher court for rehearing or review
    2. a request for this
    3. the right to do this
    4. a case thus transferred

appeal Related Forms
ap·peal′·able adjective ap·peal′·ing adjective ap·peal′·ingly adverb
appeal Synonyms

appeal

n.

  1. A plea

    request, plea, bid, claim, suit, submission, solicitation, petition, question, imploring, recourse, entreaty, prayer, invocation, supplication, address, demand, importunity, call, requisition, application, overture, proposition, proposal, call for aid, earnest request, adjuration.

    Antonyms denial*, refusal*, renunciation. *

  2. Action to carry a case to a higher court

    petition, motion, application, request for retrial, request for review.

  3. Attractiveness

    attractiveness, attraction, charm, glamour, interest, allure, charmingness, seductiveness, engagingness, winsomeness, desirability, fascination, magnetism, charisma, sex appeal.

appeal Synonyms

appeal

v.

  1. To ask another seriously

    entreat, request, petition, implore, beseech, plead, solicit, beg, supplicate, importune, urge, adjure, pray, sue; see also beg 1.

  2. To carry a case to a higher court

    apply for a retrial, retry, contest, bring new evidence, advance, reopen, refer to, review.

  3. To attract

    interest, attract, engage, fascinate, tempt, tantalize, awaken a response, invite, entice, allure, captivate, intrigue, attract one's interest, enchant, beguile, please, catch one's eye; see also fascinate.

appeal implies an earnest, sometimes urgent request and in legal usage connotes resort to a higher court or authority; plead, applied to formal statements in court answering to allegations or charges, carries into general usage the implication of entreaty by argument she pleaded for tolerance; sue implies respectful or formal solicitation for redress, a favor, etc.; petition implies a formal request, usually in writing and in accordance with established rights; pray and supplicate suggest humility in entreaty and imply that the request is addressed to God or to a superior authority, supplicate in addition suggesting a kneeling or other abjectly prayerful attitude

appeal Law Definition

n

  1. The process to seek and obtain a review and reversal by a court of a lower court’s decision.
  2. The process to seek and obtain a review and reversal of an administrative decision by a court or by a higher authority within the administrative agency. See also certiorari, notice of appeal, trial (trial de novo), and writ of error.
appeal (as of) (by) right
An appeal in which a court or administrative agency must review the decision that is sought to be reversed.
appeal by permission
An appeal in which a court or administrative agency’s review of a decision is within the court or agency’s discretion. Also called discretionary appeal. See also certiorari.
consolidated appeal
An appeal in which the issues to be reviewed in two or more cases are similar enough that it is practical to unite the reviews into a single appeal. See also joinder.
cross appeal
An appeal by an appellee, usually considered at the same time as the appeal by the appellant.
direct appeal
An appeal of a trial court’s decision made directly to the jurisdiction’s highest appellate court without first seeking review by the intermediate appellate courts. For example, although a United States District Court decision is usually first reviewed by one of the Untied States Court of Appeals before the United States Supreme Court considers it, a direct appeal bypasses the Court of Appeals and sends the District Court decision directly to the Supreme Court.
interlocutory appeal
An appeal of a trial court’s interim decision while the case is still pending in the trial court. Some interlocutory appeals involve legal questions whose resolution are necessary for the trial court to reach a proper decision in the action. Others involve issues that are entirely separate from the merits of the case. In most states, interlocutory appeals are permitted only in limited circumstances and are rarely granted.
appeal Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • dismiss: For the reasons he gives I would dismiss the appeal.
  • lodge: I went to York House immigration court, near Heathrow, to lodge an appeal.
  • hear: Oral hearings are usually open to the public, but you can ask to have your appeal heard in private if you want to.
  • pend: I will deal with this below in my adjudication of the maintenance pending suit appeal.
  • launch: Usually they would launch a fundraising appeal, apply for a grant or borrow from the bank.

Preposition: against

  • refusal: What do you identify as grounds for a formal appeal against a refusal to grant a consent?
  • decision: The company can appeal against the decision of the Inland Revenue.
  • conviction: He lost an appeal against conviction at the Court of Appeal in July.
  • ruling: Cape plc, the offending company, cannot appeal against this ruling.

Adjective modifier

  • esthetic: They are extremely hard wearing whilst keeping a high esthetic appeal due to the glass particles within the mix.
  • universal: Clearly her merits as a writer don't work for everyone - but how many writers could claim genuinely universal appeal?
  • enduring: The NHS principle - healthcare according to need not ability to pay retains today its enduring appeal.
  • urgent: The United States has received from the Greek Government an urgent appeal for financial and economic assistance.

Modifies a noun

  • tribunal: A disability appeal tribunal confirmed the rejection of his claim.
  • hearing: Oral hearing This is an appeal hearing which you can go to.
  • court: President Bush has named assistant attorney general and former appeals court judge Michael Chertoff as Ridge's successor, subject to Senate confirmation.
  • panel: Alternatively, you can appeal to an independent appeal panel.

Noun used with modifier

  • tsunami: They also did some fundraising for the tsunami appeal.
  • fundraising: Usually they would launch a fundraising appeal, apply for a grant or borrow from the bank.

Preposition: for

  • witness: He is appealing for witnesses to assist his inquiries into the collision.
appeal Quotes

   Only two classes of books are of universal appeal. The very best and the very worst.

—Ford, Ford Madox originally Ford Hermann Hueffer

Mad about the boy, It's pretty funny but I'm mad about the boy. He has a gayappeal That makes me feel There may be something sad about the boy.

—Coward, Sir Noe«  l Peirce