Abstract
The number of people representing themselves in California’s appellate courts is significant and it is increasing. These litigants face many challenges, as it is especially difficult for a layperson to effectively present or fight against an appeal. Appellate cases are about finding technical legal errors with the previous superior court proceedings and/or decision, and are based on specific legal nuances that can be quite obscure. Despite this reality, assistance for self-represented litigants in the appellate court system is rarely discussed in California, and thus there are very few court services available to help people who choose to represent themselves. In this thesis I provide a comprehensive review of the problem and assess options for providing assistance to self-represented litigants in California’s appellate courts. Conclusions Reached: Using a Criteria-Alternatives Matrix helped me to reach the conclusion that there are several viable options for solving this problem. The best option at this time is to require each California appellate court to provide an online self-help manual for self-represented litigants. However, it is important to recognize that the ideal option could change as the environment changes in the future. The most important recommendation that emerges from this thesis is that self-help services in appellate courts be brought to the forefront of policy discussions in the California judicial branch.