how to file a motion for new trial for yourself without a lawyer

1. You write your motion 2. You file your motion with the court clerk 3. The court clerk inserts the date and time your motion will be heard by the judge

Full Answer

How do I file a motion in court without an attorney?

In some jurisdictions, the trial judge can order a new trial without a defendant asking. If the judge denies a motion for a new trial, the defendant can file an appeal asking a higher court to overrule the trial judge. The prosecution cannot make a motion for a new trial because the principle of double jeopardy applies upon an acquittal. But in some instances the prosecution can appeal a …

Can a defendant file a motion for a new trial?

How do I file a petition or a motion?

How do I format a motion for a new trial?

How long do you have to file a motion for a new trial?

For example, California requires that you first file a notice of intent of move for a new trial within 15 days of notice of entry of judgment in the case. After you file your notice, you have up to 10 days ...

What to do if a judge denies a motion for a new trial?

If the judge denies your motion for a new trial, you may still have other options available to challenge the trial court's judgment, such as filing an appeal. You may be able to assert similar arguments on appeal that you asserted in your motion for a new trial.

Why do you need affidavits?

If any of the reasons you've listed include reference to facts outside the trial itself, you must get affidavits from witnesses attesting to those facts. For example, one of the grounds for which a trial court may order a new trial is improper conduct by counsel or jury misconduct. [12]

What should be the caption of a motion?

Create your caption. The caption of your motion should be identical to all other documents filed in the case. If you want to request a hearing on your motion, you typically must include a statement such as "oral argument requested" or "hearing requested" in your caption, below the case number.

What to do if you are not available for a hearing?

If forms were not available, you should check with the clerk to find out if you have to request a hearing. Keep in mind that the parties don't change when you file a motion for a new trial. If you were a defendant in the original trial, you will still be listed in the motion's caption as the defendant.

What to do if you can't find fill in the blank form?

If you cannot find a fill-in-the-blank form, you may want to ask the clerk for other new trial motions that were filed in the same court. You can use those motions as guides to craft your own, although you should be careful about copying the language in them verbatim.

Do you need a transcript for a motion for a new trial?

State rules often list specific grounds for which a motion for a new trial may be granted. To properly review what happened at trial and reference it in your motion, you may need to request a trial transcript. You will be charged a fee for the transcript.

How does a motion for a new trial work?

How It Works. Defendants typically make motions for new trials after guilty verdicts. In some jurisdictions, the trial judge can order a new trial without a defendant asking. If the judge denies a motion for a new trial, the defendant can file an appeal asking a higher court to overrule the trial judge. The prosecution cannot make a motion ...

When can a court grant a new trial motion?

Courts may also grant new trial motions when certain kinds of new evidence have been discovered after conviction. But small, slightly helpful facts aren't enough. The new evidence generally must:

What is a new trial grant?

In short, new trial grants generally require that some kind of error prevented the defendant from receiving a fair trial.

What happens after a criminal trial?

After a criminal trial ends in a conviction, the defendant can file a motion for a new trial. Courts grant these—though rarely—to correct significant errors that happened during trial or if substantial new evidence of innocence comes to light. A court may also grant a motion for a new trial if there has been a "miscarriage of justice.".

What are some examples of legal errors during trial?

An example is a judge having wrongly excluded evidence that would have made a difference to the outcome of the trial. An erroneous exclusion of evidence might occur if a judge ruled that certain testimony should be excluded because of the hearsay rule, but the ruling was erroneous because an exception to the rule applied.

Why do judges order a new trial?

A judge may also order a new trial if doing so could fix an injustice associated with the first trial. For example, in a 2013 federal case, a judge granted a motion for a new trial for two Mexican restaurant owners who had been convicted of harboring undocumented aliens for profit.

Can the prosecution make a motion for a new trial?

The prosecution cannot make a motion for a new trial because the principle of double jeopardy applies upon an acquittal. But in some instances the prosecution can appeal a trial judge's grant of a new trial, and it can usually appeal a new trial order by an appellate court.