New Case Law – Preservation

On March 2, 2011, the Oregon Court of Appeals published an opinion in Gagliardi and Gagliardi.  The opinion does not provides a stark reminder of the importance of having competent trial counsel.  In this case, Husband appealed from various rulings of the trial court.  The Court of Appeals held that Husband had not presented his arguments to the trial court and therefore the arguments were not preserved.  Unless the trial court has an opportunity to rule on an issue, the Court of Appeals cannot make a ruling on that issue.  This is why it is crucial that litigants have competent counsel who is aware of the rules of preservation.