When an appeal is a pure issue of law, does the Court of Appeal give deference to the trial court's ruling?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Lee, D061235 (Cal. App. 2014):

When an appeal presents a pure issue of law, we exercise our independent judgment, giving no deference to the trial court's ruling. Where the facts are not disputed, the effect or legal significance of the facts is a question of law, and we are free to draw our own conclusions, independent of the ruling by the trial court. (Ghirardo v. Antonioli (1994) 8 Cal.4th 791, 799.)

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