Inextricably Intertwined: The Fourth Circuit Invokes Rare Doctrine of Pendent Appellate Jurisdiction

In federal court, litigants may appeal only a handful of interlocutory issues, such as preliminary injunctions and class certification. But many cases also involve other issues that either party may wish to challenge when an interlocutory appeal brings them before an appellate court. These situations implicate the elusive doctrine of pendent appellate jurisdiction, which permits appellate review of those “other” issues in limited circumstances.

The Fourth Circuit confronted one of those rare cases in Polk v. Montgomery County Public Schools, where it held that it could exercise pendent appellate jurisdiction over the merits of constitutional claims during an interlocutory appeal from the denial of preliminary injunctive relief.

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