Appeal Letter
How to Write An Appeal Letter
Outline of the appeal process
- Your appeal must be submitted to our office before 5:00 pm within 10 business days of the signed Charge Resolution letter. Note if you miss the deadline you will be responsible for completing all of the proposed sanctions.
- Your appeal must be in writing and addressed to President Guy Bailey
- Our office will submit your appeal and corresponding case documents to the appellate. The appellate will have 30 calendar days to provide a written response; they may approve, deny, or modify the proposed sanction in question and their decision will be final.
- Your appeal letter may only address the sanctions you disagree with and not the charges you have accepted responsibility for.
Some tips on what to include in your appeal letter
- In an appeal letter, you state the situation or event, explain why you think it was wrong or unjust, and state what you hope the new outcome will be. The letter is your chance to share your side of the situation.
- It is an official letter, so be sure to use the proper business letter format. If you send your appeal via email, the format is slightly different.
- Try to avoid any anger or judgment in your writing. While you might be very upset about the issue, you do not want to convey this feeling in your letter. Be confident and persuasive, but not aggressive. Consider asking a friend to read through the letter to make sure the tone is appropriate.
- If you did something wrong, acknowledge it. State specifically what you did wrong, and what you have learned from that experience.
- In your letter, explicitly state what you hope will happen. Do you want the reader to reverse a decision he or she made? Be clear about what you want.
- Keep your letter brief. Focus on the facts, stating what the situation is, why you think it is wrong, and what next steps you request.
- Because this is a professional letter, thoroughly proofread your letter before submitting it.
Detailed information can be found in Section IX: Appeal Procedures of the Handbook of Operating Procedures Section: STU 02-100, also included in our initial correspondence email.