A potential appellate outcome is to modify the decision. Which option corresponds to this possibility?

• A. Affirm
• B. Reverse
• C. Modify
• D. Remand

Answer: (C)

The key idea is that appellate review can adjust a ruling without fully upholding or overturning it. “Modify” means the appellate court agrees with the overall outcome or decides a large part of the decision is correct, but it changes some aspect of it. For example, the court might keep the judgment the way it is but alter the remedy, such as reducing damages, or revise a specific factual or legal finding that affects the judgment—without reversing the entire decision or sending the case back for new proceedings. This stands in contrast to affirming (leaving the decision exactly as the lower court issued), reversing (overturning the decision entirely), or remanding (sending the case back to the trial court for further action). So the option that matches changing parts of the decision without discarding it is “modify.”