In Re Kelaco Corporation, dba Kelaco Construction Company

“This Court has never held that the States are required to establish avenues of appellate review, but it is now fundamental that, once established, these avenues must be kept free of unreasoned distinctions that can only impede open and equal access to the courts.” Rinaldi v. Yeager, 384 U.S. 305, 310 (1966). Denying a party “full access to [the judicial] processes raises problems for its legitimacy.” Boddie v. Connecticut, 401 U.S. 371, 376 (1971). The question presented here is: Where a Florida state appellate court finds enough merit to an appeal such that it holds an oral argument but, after the oral argument, refuses to issue a written opinion disposing of the appeal, does it violate a party’s rights to Access to Courts and to Due Process guaranteed by the First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution given that where there is no written opinion by the Florida state appellate court, the Florida Supreme Court will not consider triggering its discretionary appellate review?