Robert Brooks is a criminal appellate lawyer practicing in Memphis, Tennessee. With nearly forty years at the bar, he has narrowed his practice to a single discipline — the appellate and post-conviction review of criminal cases in Tennessee state and federal courts — so that he can give the full depth of his attention to the clients whose cases he accepts.
A Practice Built on Four Decades of Criminal Work
Mr. Brooks began practicing criminal defense law nearly forty years ago. In the decades since, his work has spanned the full arc of a criminal case: investigation, motion practice, jury trial, sentencing, and every layer of appellate and collateral review. He has tried criminal cases and handled appeals, post-conviction petitions, and habeas corpus matters in Tennessee state and federal courts. He has practiced in private and, for a period of his career, served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender, representing indigent clients accused of federal crimes in the Western District of Tennessee and on appeal.
That breadth of experience is the foundation for the narrower practice he maintains today. Appellate work rewards lawyers who understand not only how a case is argued on paper but how it was actually tried — what a prosecutor was thinking, what the jury saw, where the record is strong and where it is silent. Mr. Brooks brings that understanding to every appeal he takes.
Exclusive Focus on Criminal Appeals
Mr. Brooks now limits his practice solely to criminal appeals and collateral review. He handles:
- Direct appeals from convictions in Tennessee Criminal Courts to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals and, where applicable, the Tennessee Supreme Court
- Federal criminal appeals from the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- Post-conviction relief petitions under Tennessee’s Post-Conviction Procedure Act (Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-30-101 et seq.), including claims of ineffective assistance of counsel, prosecutorial misconduct, and newly discovered evidence
- State and federal habeas corpus petitions — challenging convictions and sentences on constitutional grounds
- Petitions for writ of certiorari to the Tennessee Supreme Court and to the Supreme Court of the United States
- Post-sentencing motions and compassionate release in appropriate federal cases
Appellate practice demands a different skill set from trial practice. It turns on the careful reading of a cold record, the identification of preserved and unpreserved issues, the disciplined framing of legal questions, and the ability to write a brief that will persuade appellate judges who have never met the client and who will decide the case on paper. Mr. Brooks has built his career on that craft.
The Appellate Process — What Clients Should Know
An appeal is not a retrial. The appellate court does not hear witnesses or weigh evidence. It reviews the trial record for legal error — and to prevail, an appellant generally must show that an error occurred, that the error was preserved at trial, and that it likely affected the outcome. Claims not preserved below are often reviewed only for plain error, a significantly higher bar.
Post-conviction and habeas review are different again. They look beyond the trial record to constitutional defects — most commonly claims that trial counsel’s performance was constitutionally deficient under Strickland v. Washington, or that the prosecution withheld material exculpatory evidence under Brady v. Maryland. These matters involve evidentiary hearings, witness testimony, and often the development of a factual record that was never built at trial.
Deadlines are strict in every appellate context. A notice of appeal in a Tennessee criminal case is generally due within 30 days of the judgment. Federal criminal appeals run on 14 days from entry of judgment. Post-conviction petitions in Tennessee must generally be filed within one year of the final judgment on direct appeal. Missing these deadlines can be fatal to a client’s rights, and Mr. Brooks’s first advice to any prospective appellate client is always the same: call as early as possible.
Education
- Juris Doctor
- Undergraduate degree
Detailed educational history available on request.
Courts of Practice
- Criminal Court of Shelby County, Tennessee
- Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals
- Tennessee Supreme Court
- United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
- United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- Supreme Court of the United States
Professional Experience
- Former Assistant Federal Public Defender
- Private criminal defense practice — trial and appellate work across Tennessee state and federal courts
- Present practice limited exclusively to criminal appeals and post-conviction review
Contact the Firm
Brooks Law Firm
2299 Union Avenue
Memphis, Tennessee 38104
Phone: (901) 324-5000
Email: patrick@patrickbrookslaw.com
Consultations regarding criminal appeals, post-conviction petitions, and habeas corpus matters may be arranged by telephone or in person at our Midtown Memphis office. Appellate deadlines are short — if you or a family member has been convicted in a Tennessee state or federal court, contact the firm promptly to preserve your rights.