If you were the defendant and were unable to make a small claims court appeal due to a family death, most likely your appeal was dismissed due to your failure to appear. If so, you need to write the court clerk and the other side advising what happened seeking to have a new date for the appeal immediately. Keep a copy of the letter for future reference.At the same time you need to file a motion to set aside the dismissal of your appeal due to the family death and serve it on all parties. The court will then set a hearing date to decide your request. Make sure you attach actual documents such as a funeral notice or a death certificate to support the basis for your request.Good luck.