What Is APC in Legal Terms
In legal parlance, the abbreviation APC can stand for several different things, and it’s important for legal professionals and students to understand the various interpretations of the term.
In civil procedure, especially in the area of jurisdiction, a typical meaning of APC is "apcn," which stands for "assumed per curiam appellate jurisdiction." Each of the three components of this acronym has significance:
• "Assumed" signifies that the court has decided to exercise its appellate jurisdiction for a given case. This does not mean that an appellate court will automatically hear every particular case that is appropriate for its consideration; rather, the use of the word explicitly indicates that it has made a conscious choice to pursue appellate consideration of the particular matter at hand.
• "Per curiam" refers to the fact that the decision or opinion has been rendered by the court as a whole, rather than by a judge selected by the court to write the opinion specifically for that case. Rather than being specific to one individual, the opinion is attributed to the court as a body.
• "Appellate" indicates that the case at hand is being evaluated in the context of an appellate appeal, or, in other words , that the matter in question is being considered by a higher-level court in the judicial system after a decision has been reached in the lower-level court. It often involves reconsidering a case that has already been decided in the lower court, which may have been a trial court, district court, superior court, circuit court, supreme court, or some other court presiding in the court system at the state or national level. In many developing countries, a court of appeal will be established to hear appeals from decisions issued by trial courts, just like courts of appeal in the United States hear appeals from decisions issued by lower-level courts.
For law students, the usage of "APC" or "apcn" is important to understand with regard to the principle of stare decisis, which is the doctrine that past court decisions will be used as points of reference in later cases. In their education, law students are often expected to read "headnotes" that provide a summary of a given section of a decision or opinion; these headnotes often use terminology such as "APC (ASSUMED PER CURIAM APPELLATE JURISDICTION)." There are, however, other uses of the "APC" abbreviation that law students may come across, such as "APC (ALTERNATIVE PLASTICITY-COMPRESSIBILITY)." In order to avoid confusion with other uses of the five-letter abbreviation, it’s important for students to understand the context in which "APC" is being used.
APC: Approved Practice Code
By definition, the approved practice code or "APC" is a number that represents a specific legal topic. It identifies the type of legal action being taken by a specific person, firm or organization. It can also be the legal action that a person, firm, or organization is defending against. An approved practice code is an abstract to specific and non-specific actions.
When the approved practice code is the same as a legal action or state statute, it is referred to as an approved or accepted practice code. However, an approved practice code can also be an additional specific number preceding a state statute that is only used in specific counties.
An approved practice code not only identifies a specific action, but also identifies if DCS is the petitioner, respondent or intervenor. Also, the approved practice code, by each specific jurisdiction, can identify if the case is being heard at the juvenile court, circuit court, Department of Health and Rehabilitation (DOHR) court, or the family court division of the district court.
APC: Association of Personal Consultants
Association of Personal Consultants, a UK group providing human resource services to the legal field, is a term you won’t likely run across much in the US legal industry. The association combines human resource search and placement, human resource consulting and employee benefits under one roof. These services are most commonly found in larger firms in the US but are likely to be more common in the UK legal market as the profession continues to change and lawyers look for more efficient alternatives to the traditional law firm.
One service provided by the Association of Personal Consultants is the placement of candidate attorneys at law firms. Specific to this process, the Association of Personal Consultants recruits and submits to law firm clients candidates to fill positions within those law firms. The Association of Personal Consultants conducts pre-screening and presents applicants to law firm clients who conduct the final interviews. Once the candidate is selected, the Association of Personal Consultants assists with the on-boarding process.
The Association of Personal Consultants also provides human resource consulting services that extend to recruitment of attorneys at the associate level, equity partner level, and managing partner level. Other human resource consulting services include human resource information systems, record management and employee benefits.
Based on a review of the Association of Personal Consultants’ website, the legal profession is the second highest clientele served by the Association of Personal Consultants. Thirty-two percent of the Association of Personal Consultant’s law firm clients are regional/mid-sized law firms, 29% are niche law firms, and 25% are global law firm clients.
APC: Arbitration Practice Certificate
An APC or an Arbitration Practice Certificate is a qualification that is available through the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS), which is located at London University in England. The Institute has various activities, including the running of a series of courses referred to as the ‘Diplomas’. The Diploma has been awarded for many years and in many areas, including law. However, this is the first time that an Arbitration Practice Certificate has been offered. The IALS is noted for its inter-disciplinary approach to law. The Director of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies is Dr. Henrietta L. Bottomley. She comments, ‘In today’s world an understanding of the law is essential not only for lawyers but other professionals too. ‘We offer rigorous, current and relevant programs which reflect our position as the UK’s national centre for law teaching, research and scholarship.’
This new course run by IALS will be conducted by Ian McDougall, who is a tutor for the institution, and who has authored several books, including ‘Commercial Arbitration: A Guide to Arbitrators and Legal Practitioners’. Ian McDougall is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, as well as the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, and he is an adjudicator and an arbitrator. He has experience in both statutory and common law jurisdictions, and has appeared in the House of Lords and the High Court in Hong Kong, and has represented the UK in the European Court of Justice. The Arbitration Practice Certificate consists of four modules, offered one at a time every two months. The course promises to be a "fast track" way to obtain a basic understanding of arbitration. The first two modules are commercial arbitration, at a cost of £300 GBP per module, and the second two are employment arbitration, at the same cost per module. Payment is due at the time of booking. The courses are open to lawyers and other professionals with an interest in dispute resolution , namely consultants, civil servants, judges, accountants, surveyors, architects, and those within industry and commerce.
The IALS has issued some sample questions and answers to show what a two-hour exam set by the Registrar of the Institute may look like. The suggested reading list is only a guide for additional information, as it is not a definitive list. It is hoped that as a result of these courses, one or two candidates may be selected to receive further training through the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. In this commercial challenge, candidates must review and respond to case studies based upon Jack Culpan’s book ‘Commercial Arbitration And International Commercial Arbitration: A Comparative Guide’. There will be a time limit of one hour per case study, and this will be followed by a three hour written analysis and evaluation paper, and a one hour oral examination. The subject matter is diverse. One example might be a case study on insolvency, and the candidate may be asked to state which types of dispute should not be the subject of arbitration. Another example could be a case study on cost issues and how they should be addressed, followed by statements about the cost of arbitration and any comments that the candidate may have on the suggested practices. In the written case study evaluation, the candidate may be asked to question the importance of the WTO Disputes Panel, and the role of an arbitrator at an oral statement hearing. Such matters are the skills of an experienced professional, which the exams should determine if the candidate has the requisite knowledge to effectively carry out and adjudicate upon. Virtual training and online education applications are also used by the IALS. As noted earlier, the course is suitable for lawyers and other professionals, such as civil servants, consultants, surveyors, architects, judges, and accountants.
APC in Legal System in Other Countries
APC is not universally recognized and used as abbreviated legal terms in other systems of law around the world. Most of the common law world, such as Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, use the terminology and acronym ‘Pleading and Case Management’ or ‘PCM’ for the same legal functions as those of APC. Perhaps the most important difference is that in Australia the statute under which APC operates limits its application to high court or appellate courts only. Absent express legislative authority, most lower courts do not have case management powers and operate fairly traditionally as courtrooms where trials and hearings proceed with a judge presiding, sometimes with a jury. Proceedings sometimes have the potential to take months or years to resolve, whether by judge or jury.
In the United States, the concept of APC appears not to exist in any form akin to that of Canada, New Zealand or Australia. There is little reference to the concept in US case law and none of the US examples refer to any form of case or trial management. In the American case management system, there is no general power to impose case management powers in the absence of legislative authority providing for its use before all or many or most courts, especially federal courts. It appears that the wide variety of civil and criminal case management systems are inherently linked to the fact that the US has both federal and state jurisdictions, each with its own power structure and most importantly, legislatures. These legislatures have differing legal systems that, in the case of the operation of the US courts may sometimes provide for what Canadians, Australians and Kiwis would call APC.
In fact, US case law makes no mention of anything similar to the Canadian, Australian or Kiwi terms and it appears that case management has developed by custom and practice specifically within the confines of a particular court system within a particular state or, in the case of the federal courts, it might have been implemented by executive order such as that in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. In the absence of a unifying rule or code applicable to all 94 federal, district, trial and appellate courts or those within the 50 US states and US territories, there is no universal language to describe case management and trial scheduling.
Conclusion: Why APC Matters
As we have seen throughout this article, ‘APC’ can mean different things depending on the context and area of law involved. Whether it’s the Alternative Payment Cap in health law and the legal implications that come with it, the Administrative Practice Committee in the context of professional discipline, or the Advanced Professional Competence credential in legal education, APC is a term that can have a significant impact on practitioners and students alike.
Understanding the various interpretations of this term and its implications is crucial for those in the legal field. For practicing lawyers, an accurate grasp of what "APC" stands for in relation to their practice area is essential in ensuring compliance with regulations, understanding the limits imposed by alternative payment caps, and knowing how to apply for and retain the credential of expertise .
For students in the legal profession, knowing the definition of APC and how it applies to their studies can be equally critical. As students seeking a career in law, familiarizing themselves with APC and its uses allows them to understand the nuances of their field of study in a legal context. This, in turn, will help to set them up for success in their future legal careers, while providing them with a vital resource in their studies that will ultimately contribute to their performance as legal practitioners.
In short, while APC may be an abbreviation with various meanings, its importance to the practice and study of law cannot be overstated. It may be a small detail within a much bigger picture, but in the world of law, every detail counts.