An appeal to the Supreme Court isn't a second trial, and treating it like one is one of the more common mistakes made by lawyers unfamiliar with appellate practice at this level. The Court is reviewing whether the law was correctly applied and whether the lower courts' findings can reasonably be sustained, not re-hearing the underlying facts from scratch. Understanding what the Supreme Court is actually reviewing Most criminal appeals reach the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution, which itself requires demonstrating that the case involves a substantial question of law or a grave miscarriage of justice, not simply a disagreement with the outcome. A best supreme court criminal advocate preparing this kind of petition spends considerable time identifying exactly which legal questions the case genuinely raises, since a petition built around re-arguing facts already settled at trial and in the High Court rarely gets admitted. Bu...