In Foman v. Davis, 371 U.S. 178 (1962), the petitioner filed a notice of appeal from the denial of her motions to vacate the judgment and to amend the complaint. The court of appeals held that the plaintiffs failure to designate the underlying judgment of dismissal in the notice of appeal prevented the court from reviewing that judgment. (See 371 U.S. at 180-81.) The U.S. Supreme Court reversed, reasoning: "The Court of Appeals should have treated the appeal from the denial of the motions as an effective, although inept, attempt to appeal from the judgment sought to be vacated. Petitioner's intention to seek review of both the dismissal and the denial of the motions was manifest. Not only did both parties brief and argue the merits of the earlier judgment on appeal, but petitioner's statement of points on which she intended to rely on appeal, submitted to both respondent and the court pursuant to rule, similarly demonstrated the intent to challenge the dismissal. It is too late in the day and entirely contrary to the spirit of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for decisions on the merits to be avoided on the basis of such mere technicalities." (Id. at 181.)