Criminal Appeals: Berufung & Revision Nationwide

A criminal judgment is a shock, but rarely the final result. Judges make mistakes. Witnesses lie. Evidence is misevaluated. The German appellate system gives us the chance to correct these errors.

Important: The deadline to file legal remedies is strictly one week from the verbal pronouncement of the judgment in court. If you miss this deadline, the judgment becomes final (res judicata) and the sentence must be served.

Berufung (Appeal on Fact and Law): The Second Chance

Against judgments of the Local Court (Amtsgericht - e.g., in Mannheim, Heidelberg, Weinheim), a full appeal named Berufung is possible. The special feature: The trial is completely retried from scratch.

• New taking of evidence: Witnesses are heard again.
• New facts: We can introduce new evidence that was overlooked or forgotten in the first instance.
• Change of strategy: We can completely adapt the defense strategy if necessary.

Revision (Appeal on Law): Finding Legal Errors

Against judgments of the Regional Court (Landgericht), the only available remedy is the Revision. In this procedure, no witnesses are heard. The appellate court (Higher Regional Court in Karlsruhe or the Federal Court of Justice/BGH) examines the written judgment solely for legal errors.

An appeal strictly on questions of law is the "mathematics of law". We look for:

• Procedural impediments: Were all motions properly ruled upon? Were all mandatory persons present at all times?
• Substantive legal errors: Did the judge misinterpret the law? Is the reasoning of the evidence logically contradictory?

Our Expertise before Higher Courts

Revision briefs demand meticulous desk work. We defend your interests before the Landgericht Mannheim, the Oberlandesgericht Karlsruhe (Higher Regional Court), and the Bundesgerichtshof (BGH). However, we also take on cases at other courts nationwide.

Leapfrog Appeal (Sprungrevision)

Anyone wishing to challenge a first-instance judgment of the Local Court (Amtsgericht) may, instead of filing a standard appeal (Berufung), go directly to the Revision (§ 335 Code of Criminal Procedure) — known as the Sprungrevision or leapfrog appeal. This is advisable when the facts are undisputed and only legal errors are to be challenged, as the Revision reviews only questions of law, not the facts afresh. We advise you which remedy — standard appeal or leapfrog appeal — offers the better prospects of success and the faster outcome in your specific case.

Immediate Appeal & Reinstatement

Beyond the standard appeal (Berufung) and the Revision, further legal remedies exist: the immediate appeal (Beschwerde) targets court orders and rulings — such as an arrest warrant or a costs order — and must be filed within one week. Where a deadline has been missed through no fault of the party — for example because the judgment was served late or the accused was ill — reinstatement to the previous legal position (Wiedereinsetzung in den vorigen Stand) can be applied for. In every case, we examine whether such remedies are available.

Sentence Execution and Suspension

Even after a judgment has become final, options remain: we apply for suspension of the sentence on probation where the statutory conditions are met, or examine whether an interruption of sentence execution on health grounds is possible. In proceedings involving a fine, we can apply for payment by installments or community service as an alternative to imprisonment in default. Every judgment has a life after it becomes final — and we are there for you during this phase as well.

As of June 2026