Hunter v. United States
Issues
Are claims of ineffective assistance of counsel or claims that a sentence is above the statutory maximum the only two permissible exceptions to a general appeal waiver? Does an appeal waiver still apply if the sentencing judge tells the defendant that they can appeal their sentence and the government does not object?
In this case, the Court will determine whether petitioner Hunter, a criminal defendant, may appeal his sentence, despite agreeing to waive his right to appeal when he entered a plea agreement with the United States government. The lower court determined that Hunter’s waiver prevented his appeal, even though he argues his sentence is unconstitutional. Hunter asserts that because plea agreements are like contracts, the Court should recognize that doctrines which make a contract invalid can also make a plea agreement’s appeal waiver invalid. Additionally, Hunter separately claims that the District Court’s statement during sentencing, which informed him that he retained the right to appeal, should invalidate his appeal waiver because the government did not object. The government argues that applying contract defenses to appeal waivers is not supported by the law, and that none of Hunter’s stated contract doctrines apply in this case. The government also maintains that there is no legal basis for the District Court’s statement to modify the appeal waiver, and that the District Court’s statement pertained to other appealable claims that Hunter did not raise. The outcome of this case will have significant implications for the rights of criminal defendants, their leverage during plea negotiations, and the availability of appeals.
Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties
(1) Whether the only permissible exceptions to a general appeal waiver are for claims of ineffective assistance of counsel or that the sentence exceeds the statutory maximum; and (2) whether an appeal waiver applies when the sentencing judge advises the defendant that he has a right to appeal and the government does not object.
The Petitioner, Munson P.
Additional Resources
- Rory Little, The Anticipated Criminal Law Decisions and Arguments for the Rest of this Term, SCOTUSblog (Feb. 18, 2026).
- Brandon Lowrey, High Court To Eye Limits On Appeal Waivers In Plea Deals, Law360 (Oct. 10, 2025).
- Justin Wise, US Supreme Court to Consider Possible Limits of Appeal Waivers, Bloomberg Law (Oct. 10, 2025).