APP-101-INFO - Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases

Summary

Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases

Text

Form ID: APP-101-INFO
Title: Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases
Effective Date: 2025-01-01
Mandatory Form: no
Info Page: https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/APP-101-INFO
Primary Download URL: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app101info.pdf
Form Detail Page:
Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases
(APP-101-INFO)
Explains the steps to begin and complete a request that a higher court review (appeal) a final decision of a trial court in a limited civil case (generally a case for $35,000 or less). It includes links  to online resources to help understand each step in the appeal process.
Get form APP-101-INFO
Effective: January 1, 2025
Go to
How-to instructions for Appeals
Go to
Appeals Form Packets
PDF Text:
Judicial Council of California, www.courts.ca.gov 
January 1, 2025, Optional Form 
Code of Civil Procedure, §§ 85–88; 
Cal. Rules of Court, rules 8.800–8.843, 8.800–8.891
Information on Appeal Procedures 
for Limited Civil Cases 
APP-101-INFO Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases
GENERAL INFORMATION
1 What does this information sheet cover? 
This information sheet tells you about appeals in limited 
civil cases. These are civil cases in which the amount of 
money claimed is $35,000 or less.  
If you are the party who is appealing (asking for the trial 
court’s decision to be reviewed), you are called the 
APPELLANT, and you should read Information for the 
Appellant, starting on page 2. If you received notice that 
another party in your case is appealing, you are called the 
RESPONDENT and you should read Information for the 
Respondent, starting on page 11.  
This information sheet does not cover everything you may 
need to know about appeals in limited civil cases. It is 
meant only to give you a general idea of the appeal 
process. To learn more, you should read rules 8.800–8.843 
and 8.880–8.891 of the California Rules of Court, which 
set out the procedures for limited civil appeals. You can get 
these rules at any courthouse or county law library or 
online at www.courts.ca.gov/rules.
2 What is an appeal? 
An appeal is a request to a higher court to review a 
decision made by a judge or jury in a lower court. In a 
limited civil case, the court hearing the appeal is the 
appellate division of the superior court and the lower 
court—called the “trial court” in this information sheet
—is the superior court.
It is important to understand that an appeal is NOT a new 
trial. The appellate division will not consider new 
evidence, such as the testimony of new witnesses or new 
exhibits. The appellate division’s job is to review a record 
of what happened in the trial court and the trial court’s 
decision to see if certain kinds of legal errors were made:
For information about appeal procedures in other kinds 
of cases, see: 
Information on Appeal Procedures for Unlimited 
Civil Cases (form APP-001-INFO)
Information on Appeal Procedures for Infractions 
(form CR-141-INFO)
Information on Appeal Procedures for 
Misdemeanors (form CR-131-INFO)
You can get these forms at any courthouse or county 
law library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
Prejudicial error: The appellant (the party who is 
appealing) may ask the appellate division to decide if an 
error was made about either the law or court procedures 
in the case that caused substantial harm to the appellant 
(this is called “prejudicial error”).
Prejudicial error can include things like errors made by 
the judge about the law, errors or misconduct by the 
lawyers, incorrect instructions given to the jury, and 
misconduct by the jury that harmed the appellant. When 
it conducts its review, the appellate division presumes 
that the judgment, order, or other decision being 
appealed is correct. It is the responsibility of the 
appellant to show the appellate division that an error 
was made and that the error was harmful.
No substantial evidence: The appellant may also ask 
the appellate division to decide if there was substantial 
evidence supporting the judgment, order, or other 
decision being appealed. When it conducts its review, 
the appellate division only looks to see if there was 
evidence that reasonably supports the decision. The 
appellate division generally will not reconsider the 
jury’s or trial court’s conclusion about which side had 
more or stronger evidence or whether witnesses were 
telling the truth or lying.
The appellate division generally will not overturn the 
judgment, order, or other decision being appealed 
unless the record clearly shows that one of these legal 
errors was made.
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3 Do I need a lawyer to represent me in an 
appeal? 
You do not have to have a lawyer; if you are an individual 
(rather than a corporation, for example), you are allowed to 
represent yourself in an appeal in a limited civil case. But 
appeals can be complicated and you will have to follow the 
same rules that lawyers have to follow. If you have any 
questions about the appeal procedures, you should talk to a 
lawyer.
If you decide not to use a lawyer, you must put your 
address, telephone number, fax number (if available), and 
email address (if available) on the first page of every 
document you file with the court and let the court know if 
this contact information changes so that the court can 
contact you if needed.
4 Where can I find a lawyer to help me with 
my appeal? 
You have to hire your own attorney if you want one. You 
can get information about finding an attorney on the Self-
Help Guide to the California Courts at 
selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/get-free-or-low-cost-legal-help.
INFORMATION FOR THE APPELLANT
This part of the information sheet is written for the 
appellant—the party who is appealing the trial court’s 
decision. It explains some of the rules and procedures 
relating to appealing a decision in a limited civil case. The 
information may also be helpful to the respondent. 
Additional information for respondents can be found 
starting on page 11 of this information sheet.
5 Who can appeal? 
Only a party in the trial court case can appeal a decision in 
that case. You may not appeal on behalf of a friend, a 
spouse, a child, or another relative unless you are a legally 
appointed representative of that person (such as the 
person’s guardian or conservator).
6 Can I appeal any decision the trial court 
made?
No. Generally, you can only appeal the final judgment—
the decision at the end that decides the whole case. Other 
rulings made by the trial court before the final judgment 
generally cannot be separately appealed but can be 
reviewed only later as part of an appeal of the final 
judgment. There are a few exceptions to this general rule. 
Code of Civil Procedure section 904.2 lists a few types of 
orders in a limited civil case that can be appealed right 
away. These include orders that:
Change or refuse to change the place of trial (venue)
Grant a motion to quash service of summons or grant a 
motion to stay or dismiss the action on the ground of 
inconvenient forum
Grant a new trial or deny a motion for judgment 
notwithstanding the verdict
Discharge or refuse to discharge an attachment or grant 
a right to attach
Grant or dissolve an injunction or refuse to grant or 
dissolve an injunction
Appoint a receiver
Are made after final judgment in the case
(You can get a copy of Code of Civil Procedure section 
904.2 at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes.xhtml.)
7 How do I start my appeal? 
First, you must serve and file a notice of appeal. The notice 
of appeal tells the other party or parties in the case and the 
trial court that you are appealing the trial court’s decision. 
You may use Notice of Appeal/Cross-Appeal—Limited 
Civil Case (form APP-102) to prepare a notice of appeal in 
a limited civil case. You can get form APP-102 at any 
courthouse or county law library or online at 
www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
8 How do I “serve and file” the notice of 
appeal?
“Serve and file” means that you must:
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, deliver, or 
electronically send (“serve”) the notice of appeal to the 
other party or parties in the way required by law. If the 
notice of appeal is mailed or personally delivered, it 
must be by someone who is not a party to the case—so 
not you.
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Make a record that the notice of appeal has been served. 
This record is called a “proof of service.”  Proof of 
Service (form APP-109) or Proof of Electronic Service 
(Appellate Division) (form APP-109E) can be used to 
make this record. The proof of service must show who 
served the notice of appeal, who was served with the 
notice of appeal, how the notice of appeal was served 
(by mail, in person, or electronically), and the date the 
notice of appeal was served. 
Bring or mail the original notice of appeal and the proof 
of service to the trial court that issued the judgment, 
order, or other decision you are appealing. You should 
make a copy of the notice of appeal you are planning to 
file for your own records before you file it with the 
court. It is a good idea to bring or mail an extra copy of 
the notice of appeal to the clerk when you file your 
original and ask the clerk to stamp this copy to show 
that the original has been filed.
You can get more information about how to serve court 
papers and proof of service from What Is Proof of Service? 
(form APP-109-INFO) and on the Self-Help Guide to the 
California Courts at 
9 Is there a deadline to file my notice of 
appeal? 
Yes. In a limited civil case, except in the very limited 
circumstances listed in rule 8.823, you must file your 
notice of appeal within 30 days after the trial court clerk or 
a party serves either a document called a “Notice of Entry” 
of the trial court judgment or a file-stamped copy of the 
judgment or within 90 days after entry of the judgment, 
whichever is earlier.
This deadline for filing the notice of appeal cannot be 
extended. If your notice of appeal is late, the appellate 
division will not be able to consider your appeal.
10 Do I have to pay to file an appeal? 
Yes. Unless the court waives this fee, you must pay a fee 
for filing your notice of appeal. You can ask the clerk of 
the court where you are filing the notice of appeal what the 
fee is or look up the fee for an appeal in a limited civil case 
in the current Statewide Civil Fee Schedule linked at  
www.courts.ca.gov/7646.htm (note that the “Appeal and 
Writ Related Fees” section is near the end of this schedule 
and that there are different fees for limited civil cases 
depending on the amount demanded in the case). If you 
cannot afford to pay the fee, you can ask the court to waive 
it. To do this, you must fill out and file a Request to Waive 
Court Fees (form FW-001). You can get form FW-001 at 
any courthouse or county law library or online at 
www.courts.ca.gov/forms. You can file this application 
either before you file your notice of appeal or with your 
notice of appeal. The court will review this application to 
decide if you are eligible for a fee waiver.
11 If I file a notice of appeal, do I still have 
to do what the trial court ordered me to 
do? 
Filing a notice of appeal does NOT automatically postpone 
most judgments or orders, such as those requiring you to 
pay another party money or to deliver property to another 
party (see Code of Civil Procedure sections 917.1–917.9 
and 1176; you can get a copy of these laws at 
www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes.xhtml). These 
kinds of judgments or orders will be postponed, or 
“stayed,” only if you request a stay and the court grants 
your request. In most cases, other than unlawful detainer 
cases in which the trial court’s judgment gives a party 
possession of the property, if the trial court denies your 
request for a stay, you can apply to the appellate division 
for a stay. If you do not get a stay and you do not do what 
the trial court ordered you to do, court proceedings to 
collect the money or otherwise enforce the judgment or 
order may be started against you.
12 What do I need to do after I file my notice 
of appeal? 
You must ask the clerk of the trial court to prepare and 
send the official record of what happened in the trial court 
in your case to the appellate division.
Since the appellate division judges were not there to see 
what happened in the trial court, an official record of what 
happened must be prepared and sent to the appellate 
division for its review. You can use Appellant’s Notice 
Designating Record on Appeal (Limited Civil Case) (form  
APP-103) to ask the trial court to prepare this record. You 
can get form APP-103 at any courthouse or county law 
library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
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You must serve and file this notice designating the record 
on appeal within 10 days after you file your notice of 
appeal. “Serving and filing” this notice means that you 
must:
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, deliver, or 
electronically send (“serve”) the notice to the other 
party or parties in the way required by law. If the notice 
is mailed or personally delivered, it must be by someone 
who is not a party to the case—so not you.
Make a record that the notice has been served. This 
record is called a “proof of service.” Proof of Service 
(form APP-109) or Proof of Electronic Service (form 
APP-109E) can be used to make this record. The proof 
of service must show who served the notice, who was 
served with the notice, how the notice was served (by 
mail, in person, or electronically), and the date the 
notice was served.
Bring or mail the original notice and the proof of service 
to the trial court that issued the judgment, order, or other 
decision you are appealing. You should make a copy of 
the notice you are planning to file for your own records 
before you file it with the court. It is a good idea to 
bring or mail an extra copy of the notice to the clerk 
when you file your original and ask the clerk to stamp 
this copy to show that the original has been filed.
You can get more information about how to serve court 
papers and proof of service from What Is Proof of Service? 
(form APP-109-INFO) and on the Self-Help Guide to the 
California Courts at www.courts.ca.gov/selfhelp-serving 
.htm.
13 What is the official record of the trial 
court proceedings?
There are three parts of the official record:
A record of what was said in the trial court (this is 
called the “oral proceedings”)
A record of the documents filed in the trial court (other 
than exhibits)
Exhibits that were admitted in evidence, refused, or 
lodged (temporarily placed with the court) in the trial 
court
Read below for more information about these parts of the 
record.
a. Record of what was said in the trial court 
(the “oral proceedings”)
The first part of the official record of the trial court 
proceedings is a record of what was said in the trial 
court (this is called a record of the “oral 
proceedings”). You do not have to send the appellate 
division a record of the oral proceedings. But if you 
want to raise any issue in your appeal that would 
require the appellate division to consider what was 
said in the trial court, the appellate division will need 
a record of those oral proceedings. For example, if 
you are claiming that there was not evidence 
supporting the judgment, order, or other decision you 
are appealing, the appellate division will need a 
record of the oral proceedings.
You are responsible for deciding how the record of 
the oral proceedings will be given and, depending on 
what option you select and your circumstances, you 
may also be responsible for paying for preparing this 
record or for preparing an initial draft of the record. 
If you do not take care of these responsibilities, a 
record of the oral proceedings in the trial court will 
not be prepared and sent to the appellate division. If 
the appellate division does not receive this record, 
it will not be able to review any issues that are 
based on what was said in the trial court and it 
may dismiss your appeal.
In a limited civil case, you can use Appellant’s 
Notice Designating Record on Appeal (Limited Civil 
Case) (form APP-103) to tell the court whether you 
want a record of the oral proceedings and, if so, the 
form of the record that you want to use. You can get 
form APP-103 at any courthouse or county law 
library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
There are four ways in which a record of the oral 
proceedings can be prepared for the appellate 
division:
If you or the other party arranged to have a court 
reporter there during the trial court proceedings, 
the reporter can prepare a record, called a 
“reporter’s transcript.”
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If the proceedings were officially electronically 
recorded, the trial court can have a transcript 
prepared from that recording or, if the court has a 
local rule permitting this and you and the other 
party agree (“stipulate”) to this, you can use the 
official electronic recording itself instead of a 
transcript. 
You can use an agreed statement.
You can use a statement on appeal.
Read below for more information about these 
options.
(1) Reporter's transcript
Description: A reporter’s transcript is a written 
record (sometimes called a “verbatim” record) of 
the oral proceedings in the trial court prepared by 
a court reporter. Rule 8.834 of the California 
Rules of Court establishes the requirements 
relating to reporter’s transcripts.
When available: If a court reporter was there in 
the trial court and made a record of the oral 
proceedings, you can choose (“elect”) to have the 
court reporter prepare a reporter’s transcript for 
the appellate division. In most limited civil cases, 
however, a court reporter will not have been there 
unless you or another party in your case made 
specific arrangements to have a court reporter 
there. Check with the court to see if a court 
reporter made a record of the oral proceedings in 
your case before choosing this option.
Contents: If you elect to use a reporter’s 
transcript, you must identify by date (this is 
called “designating”) what proceedings you want 
included in the reporter’s transcript. You can use 
the same form you used to tell the court you 
wanted to use a reporter’s transcript—
Appellant’s Notice Designating Record on 
Appeal (Limited Civil Case) (form APP-103)—to 
do this.
If you elect to use a reporter’s transcript, the 
respondent also has the right to designate 
additional proceedings to be included in the 
reporter’s transcript. If you elect to proceed 
without a reporter’s transcript, however, the
respondent may not designate a reporter’s 
transcript without first getting an order from the 
appellate division.
Cost: The appellant is responsible for paying for 
preparing a reporter’s transcript. The trial court 
clerk or the court reporter will notify you of the 
cost of preparing an original and one copy of the 
reporter’s transcript. You must deposit payment 
for this cost (and a fee for the trial court) or one 
of the substitutes allowed by rule 8.834 with the 
trial court clerk within 10 days after this notice is 
sent. (See rule 8.834 for more information about 
this deposit and the permissible substitutes, such 
as a waiver of this deposit signed by the court 
reporter.)
Unlike the fee for filing the notice of appeal and 
the costs for preparing a clerk’s transcript, the 
court cannot waive the fee for preparing a 
reporter’s transcript. A special fund, called the 
Transcript Reimbursement Fund, may be able to 
help pay for the transcript. You can get 
information about this fund at
. If you 
are unable to pay the cost of a reporter’s 
transcript, a record of the oral proceedings can be 
prepared in other ways, by using an agreed 
statement or a statement on appeal, which are 
described below. 
Completion and delivery: After the cost of 
preparing the reporter’s transcript or a 
permissible substitute has been deposited, the 
court reporter will prepare the transcript and 
submit it to the trial court clerk. When the record 
is complete, the trial court clerk will submit the 
original transcript to the appellate division and 
send you a copy of the transcript. If the 
respondent has purchased it, a copy of the 
reporter’s transcript will also be mailed to the 
respondent.
(2) Official electronic recording or transcript
When available: In some limited civil cases, the 
trial court proceedings were officially recorded 
on approved electronic recording equipment. If 
your case was officially recorded, you can choose 
(“elect”) to have a transcript prepared from the
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recording. Check with the trial court to see if the 
oral proceedings in your case were officially 
electronically recorded before you choose this 
option. If the court has a local rule permitting this 
and all the parties agree (“stipulate”), a copy of 
an official electronic recording itself can be used 
as the record, instead of preparing a transcript. If 
you choose this option, you must attach a copy of 
this agreement (“stipulation”) to your notice 
designating the record on appeal.
Contents: If you elect to use a transcript of an 
official electronic recording, you must identify 
by date (this is called “designating”) what 
proceedings you want included in the transcript. 
You can use the same form you used to tell the 
court you wanted to use a transcript of an official 
electronic recording— Appellant’s Notice 
Designating Record on Appeal (form APP-103)
—to do this.
Cost: The appellant is responsible for paying the 
court for the cost of either (a) preparing a 
transcript or (b) making a copy of the official 
electronic recording. 
(a) If you elect to use a transcript of an official 
electronic recording, you will need to deposit the 
estimated cost of preparing the transcript with the 
trial court clerk and pay the trial court a $50 fee. 
There are two ways to determine the estimated 
cost of the transcript:
You can use the amounts listed in rule 
8.130(b)(1)(B) for each full or half day of 
court proceedings to estimate the cost of 
making a transcript of the proceeding you have 
designated in your notice designating the 
record on appeal. Deposit this estimated 
amount and the $50 fee with the trial court 
clerk when you file your notice designating the 
record on appeal.
You can ask the trial court clerk for an 
estimate of the cost of preparing a transcript of 
the proceedings you have designated in you 
notice designating the record on appeal. You 
must deposit this amount and the $50 fee with 
the trial court within 10 days of receiving the 
estimate from the clerk.
(b) If the court has a local rule permitting the use 
of a copy of the electronic recording itself, rather 
than a transcript, and you have attached your 
agreement with the other parties to do this 
(“stipulation”) to the notice designating the 
record on appeal that you filed with the court, the 
trial court clerk will give you an estimate of the 
costs for this copy of the recording. You must 
pay this amount to the trial court.
If you cannot afford to pay the cost of preparing 
the transcript, the $50 fee, or the fee for the copy 
of the official electronic recording, you can ask 
the court to waive these costs. To do this, you 
must fill out and file a Request to Waive Court 
Fees (form FW-001). You can get form FW-001 
at any courthouse or county law library or online 
at www.courts.ca.gov/forms. The court will 
review this application to decide if you are 
eligible for a fee waiver.
Completion and delivery: After the estimated 
cost of the transcript or official electronic 
recording has been paid or waived, the clerk will 
have the transcript or copy of the recording 
prepared. When the transcript is completed or the 
copy of the official electronic recording is 
prepared and the rest of the record is complete, 
the clerk will send it to the appellate division.
(3) Agreed statement
Description: An agreed statement is a written 
summary of the trial court proceedings agreed to 
by all the parties. (See rule 8.836 of the 
California Rules of Court.)
When available: If the trial court proceedings 
were not recorded either by a court reporter or by 
official electronic recording equipment or if you 
do not want to use one of these options, you can 
choose (“elect”) to use an agreed statement as the 
record of the oral proceedings (please note that it 
may take more of your time to prepare an agreed 
statement than to use either a reporter’s transcript 
or official electronic recording, if they are 
available). 
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Contents: An agreed statement must explain 
what the trial court case was about, describe why 
the appellate division is the right court to 
consider an appeal in this case (why the appellate 
division has “jurisdiction”), and describe the 
rulings of the trial court relating to the points to 
be made on appeal.
The statement should include only those facts 
that you and the other parties think are needed to 
decide the appeal.
Preparation: If you elect to use this option, you 
must file the agreed statement with your notice 
designating the record on appeal or, if you and 
the other parties need more time to work on the 
statement, you can file a written agreement with 
the other parties (called a “stipulation”) stating 
that you are trying to agree on a statement. If you 
file this stipulation, within the next 30 days you 
must either file the agreed statement or tell the 
court that you and the other parties were unable 
to agree on a statement and file a new notice 
designating the record.
(4) Statement on appeal
Description: A statement on appeal is a summary 
of the trial court proceedings that is approved by 
the trial court judge who conducted those 
proceedings (the term “judge” includes 
commissioners and temporary judges). 
When available: If the trial court proceedings 
were not recorded either by a court reporter or by 
official electronic recording equipment or if you 
do not want to use one of these options, you can 
choose (“elect”) to use a statement on appeal as 
the record of the oral proceedings (please note 
that it may take more of your time to prepare a 
statement on appeal than to use either a reporter’s 
transcript or official electronic recording, if they 
are available). 
Contents: A statement on appeal must include: 
A statement of the points you (the appellant) 
are making on appeal;
A summary of the trial court’s rulings and 
judgment; and
A summary of the testimony of each witness 
and other evidence that is relevant to the issues 
you are raising on appeal.
(See rule 8.837 of the California Rules of Court 
for more information about what must be 
included in a statement on appeal and the 
procedures for preparing a statement. You can 
get a copy of this rule at any courthouse or 
county law library or online at 
www.courts.ca.gov/rules.)
Preparing a proposed statement: If you elect to 
use a statement on appeal, you must prepare a 
proposed statement. If you are not represented by 
a lawyer, you must use Proposed Statement on 
Appeal (Limited Civil Case) (form APP-104) to 
prepare your proposed statement. You can get 
form APP-104 at any courthouse or county law 
library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
Serving and filing a proposed statement: You 
must serve and file the proposed statement with 
the trial court within 20 days after you file your 
notice designating the record. “Serve and file” 
means that you must:
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, 
deliver, or electronically send (“serve”) the 
proposed statement to the respondent in the 
way required by law. If the proposed statement 
is mailed or personally delivered, it must be by 
someone who is not a party to the case—so not 
you.
Make a record that the proposed statement has 
been served. This record is called a “proof of 
service.” Proof of Service (form APP-109) or 
Proof of Electronic Service (form APP-109E) 
can be used to make this record. The proof of 
service must show who served the proposed 
statement, who was served with the proposed 
statement, how the proposed statement was 
served (by mail, in person, or electronically), 
and the date the proposed statement was 
served.
File the original proposed statement and the 
proof of service with the trial court. You 
should make a copy of the proposed statement 
you are planning to file for your own records 
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before you file it with the court. It is a good 
idea to bring or mail an extra copy of the 
proposed statement to the clerk when you file 
your original and ask the clerk to stamp this 
copy to show that the original has been filed. 
You can get more information about how to serve 
court papers and proof of service from What Is 
Proof of Service? (form APP-109-INFO) and on 
the Self-Help Guide to the California Courts at
Review and modifications: The respondent has 
10 days from the date you serve your proposed 
statement to serve and file proposed changes 
(called “amendments”) to this statement. The 
trial court judge then reviews both your proposed 
statement and any proposed amendments filed by 
the respondent. The trial judge will either make 
or order you (the appellant) to make any 
corrections or modifications to the statement that 
are needed to make sure that the statement gives 
an accurate summary of the testimony and other 
evidence relevant to the issues you stated you are 
making on appeal.
Completion and certification: If the judge makes 
any corrections or modifications to the proposed 
statement, the corrected or modified statement 
will be sent to you and the respondent for your 
review. If the judge orders you to make any 
corrections or modifications to the proposed 
statement, you must serve and file the corrected 
or modified statement within the time ordered by 
the judge. If you or the respondent disagree with 
anything in the modified or corrected statement, 
you have 10 days from the date the modified or 
corrected statement is sent to you to serve and 
file objections to the statement. The judge then 
reviews any objections, makes or orders you to 
make any additional corrections to the statement, 
and certifies the statement as an accurate 
summary of the testimony and other evidence 
relevant to the issues you stated you are making 
on appeal. 
Sending statement to the appellate division: 
Once the trial court judge certifies the statement 
on appeal, the trial court clerk will send the 
statement to the appellate division along with any 
record of the documents filed in the trial court.
b. Record of the documents filed in the trial 
court
The second part of the official record of the trial 
court proceedings is a record of the documents that 
were filed in the trial court. There are three ways in 
which a record of the documents filed in the trial 
court can be prepared for the appellate division:
A clerk’s transcript or an appendix
The original trial court file or
An agreed statement
Read below for more information about these 
options.
(1) Clerk's transcript or appendix
Description: A clerk’s transcript is a record of 
the documents filed in the trial court prepared by 
the clerk of the trial court. An appendix is a 
record of these documents prepared by a party. 
(See rule 8.845 of the California Rules of Court.)
Contents: Certain documents, such as the notice 
of appeal and the trial court judgment or order 
being appealed, must be included in the clerk’s 
transcript or appendix. These documents are 
listed in rule 8.832(a) and rule 8.845(b) of the 
California Rules of Court and in Appellant’s 
Notice Designating Record on Appeal (Limited 
Civil Case) (form APP-103). 
Clerk’s transcript: If you want any documents 
other than those listed in rule 8.832(a) to be 
included in the clerk’s transcript, you must tell 
the trial court in your notice designating the 
record on appeal. You can use form APP-103 to 
do this. You will need to identify each document 
you want included in the clerk’s transcript by its 
title and filing date or, if you do not know the 
filing date, the date the document was signed.
If you—the appellant—request a clerk’s 
transcript, the respondent also has the right to ask 
the clerk to include additional documents in the 
clerk’s transcript. If this happens, you will be 
served with a notice saying what other 
documents the respondent wants included in the 
clerk’s transcript.
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Cost: The appellant is responsible for paying for 
preparing a clerk’s transcript. The trial court 
clerk will send you a bill for the cost of preparing 
an original and one copy of the clerk’s transcript. 
You must do one of the following things within 
10 days after the clerk sends this bill or the 
appellate division may dismiss your appeal:
Pay the bill.
Ask the court to waive the cost because you 
cannot afford to pay. To do this, you must fill 
out and file a Request to Waive Court Fees 
(form FW-001). You can get form FW-001 at 
any courthouse or county law library or online 
at www.courts.ca.gov/forms. The court will 
review this application to decide if you are 
eligible for a fee waiver.
Give the court a copy of a court order showing 
that your fees in this case have already been 
waived by the court.
Completion and delivery: After the cost of 
preparing the clerk’s transcript has been paid or 
waived, the trial court clerk will compile the 
requested documents into a transcript format and, 
when the record on appeal is complete, will 
forward the original clerk’s transcript to the 
appellate division for filing. The trial court clerk 
will send you a copy of the transcript. If the 
respondent bought a copy, the clerk will also 
send a copy of the transcript to the respondent.
Appendix: If you choose to prepare an appendix 
of the documents filed in the superior court, 
rather than designating a clerk’s transcript, that 
appendix must include all the documents and be 
prepared in the form required by rule 8.845 of the 
California Rules of Court. The parties may 
prepare separate appendixes or stipulate (agree) 
to a joint appendix. If separate appendixes are 
prepared, each party must pay for its own 
appendix. If a joint appendix is prepared, the 
parties can agree on how the cost of preparing the 
appendix will be paid or the appellant will pay 
the cost.
The party preparing the appendix must serve the 
appendix on each other party (unless the parties 
have agreed or the appellate division has ordered 
otherwise) and file the appendix in the appellate 
division. The appellant’s appendix or a joint 
appendix must be served and filed before or 
together with the appellant’s opening brief. 
See   15   for information about the brief.
(2) Trial court file
When available: If the court has a local rule 
allowing this, the clerk can send the appellate 
division the original trial court file instead of a 
clerk’s transcript (see rule 8.833 of the California 
Rules of Court).
Cost: As with a clerk’s transcript, the appellant is 
responsible for paying for preparing the trial 
court file. The trial court clerk will send you a 
bill for this preparation cost. You must do one of 
the following things within 10 days after the 
clerk sends this bill or the appellate division may 
dismiss your appeal:
Pay the bill.
Ask the court to waive the cost because you 
cannot afford to pay. To do this, you must fill 
out and file a Request to Waive Court Fees 
(form FW-001). You can get form FW-001 at 
any courthouse or county law library or online 
at www.courts.ca.gov/forms. The court will 
review this application to decide if you are 
eligible for a fee waiver.
Give the court a copy of a court order showing 
that your fees in this case have already been 
waived by the court.
Completion and delivery: After the cost of 
preparing the trial court file has been paid or 
waived and the record on appeal is complete, the 
trial court clerk will send the file and a list of the 
documents in the file to the appellate division. 
The trial court clerk will also send a copy of the 
list of documents to the appellant and respondent 
so that you can put your own files of documents 
from the trial court in the correct order.
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(3) Agreed statement
When available: If you and the respondent have 
already agreed to use an agreed statement as the 
record of the oral proceedings (see a(3) above) 
and agree to this, you can use an agreed 
statement instead of a clerk’s transcript. To do 
this, you must attach to your agreed statement all 
of the documents that are required to be included 
in a clerk’s transcript.
c. Exhibits
The third part of the official record of the trial court 
proceeding is the exhibits, such as photographs, 
documents, or other items that were admitted in 
evidence, refused, or lodged (temporarily placed with 
the court) in the trial court. Exhibits are considered 
part of the record on appeal, but the clerk will not 
include any exhibits in the clerk’s transcript unless 
you ask that they be included in your notice 
designating the record on appeal. Appellant’s Notice 
Designating Record on Appeal (Limited Civil Case) 
(form APP-103), includes a space for you to make 
this request. You also can ask the trial court to send 
original exhibits to the appellate division at the time 
briefs are filed (see rule 8.843 for more information 
about this procedure and see below for information 
about briefs).
Sometimes, the trial court returns an exhibit to a 
party at the end of the trial. If the trial court returned 
an exhibit to you or another party and you or the 
other party ask for that exhibit to be included in the 
clerk’s transcript or sent to the appellate division, the 
party who has the exhibit must deliver that exhibit to 
the trial court clerk as soon as possible.
14 What happens after the official record 
has been prepared?
As soon as the record on appeal is complete, the clerk of 
the trial court will send it to the appellate division. When 
the appellate division receives the record, it will send you a 
notice telling you when you must file your brief in the 
appellate division.
15 What is a brief?
Description: A “brief” is a party’s written description of 
the facts in the case, the law that applies, and the party’s 
argument about the issues being appealed. If you are 
represented by a lawyer in your appeal, your lawyer will 
prepare your brief. If you are not represented by a lawyer, 
you will have to prepare your brief yourself. You should 
read rules 8.882–8.884 of the California Rules of Court, 
which set out the requirements for preparing, serving, and 
filing briefs in limited civil appeals, including requirements 
for the format and length of these briefs. You can get 
copies of these rules at any courthouse or county law 
library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/rules.
Contents: If you are the appellant, your brief, called an 
“appellant’s opening brief,” must clearly explain what you 
believe are the legal errors made in the trial court. Your 
brief must refer to the exact places in the clerk’s transcript 
and the reporter’s transcript (or the other forms of the 
record you are using) that support your argument. 
Remember that an appeal is not a new trial. The appellate 
division will not consider new evidence, such as the 
testimony of new witnesses or new exhibits, so do not 
include any new evidence in your brief.
You may, but are not required to, fill out Appellant’s 
Opening Brief—Limited Civil Case  (form APP-200) and 
use it as your opening brief. You can get more information 
about using this form as your opening brief from How to 
Use Form APP-200 in Limited Civil Cases (form 
APP-200-INFO).
Serving and filing: You must serve and file your brief in 
the appellate division by the deadline the court set in the 
notice it sent you, which is usually 30 days after the record 
is filed in the appellate division or 60 days from the date 
the appellant chooses to proceed with no reporter’s 
transcript under rule 8.845. “Serve and file” means that you 
must: 
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, deliver, or 
electronically send (“serve”) the brief to the other 
parties in the way required by law. If the brief is mailed 
or personally delivered, it must be by someone who is 
not a party to the case—so not you.
Make a record that the brief has been served. This 
record is called a “proof of service.” Proof of Service  
(form APP-109) or Proof of Electronic Service (form 
APP-109E) can be used to make this record. The proof
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of service must show who served the brief, who was 
served with the brief, how the brief was served (by mail, 
in person, or electronically), and the date the brief was 
served.
File the original brief and the proof of service with the 
appellate division. You should make a copy of the brief 
you are planning to file for your own records before you 
file it with the court. It is a good idea to bring or mail an 
extra copy of the brief to the clerk when you file your 
original and ask the clerk to stamp this copy to show 
that the original has been filed.
Note: If a party chooses to prepare an appendix of the 
documents filed in the trial court instead of designating 
a clerk’s transcript, the appellant’s appendix or a joint 
appendix must be served and filed before or together 
with the appellant’s opening brief.
You can get more information about how to serve court 
papers and proof of service from What Is Proof of Service? 
(form APP-109-INFO) and on the Self-Help Guide to the 
California Courts at 
You and the other parties can agree (stipulate) to extend the 
time for filing this brief by up to 30 days (see rule 8.882(b) 
for requirements for these agreements). You can also ask 
the court to extend the time for filing this brief if you can 
show good cause for an extension (see rule 8.811(b) for a 
list of the factors the court will consider in deciding 
whether there is good cause for an extension). You may 
use Application for Extension of Time to File Brief—
Limited Civil Case (form APP-106) to ask the court for an 
extension.
If you do not file your brief by the deadline set by the 
appellate division, the court may dismiss your appeal.
16 What happens after I file my brief?
Within 30 days after you serve and file your brief, the 
respondent may, but is not required to, respond by serving 
and filing a respondent’s brief. If the respondent does not 
file a brief, the appellant does not automatically win the 
appeal. The court will decide the appeal on the record, the 
appellant’s brief, and any oral argument by the appellant.
If the respondent files a brief, within 20 days after the 
respondent’s brief was filed, you may, but are not required 
to, file another brief replying to the respondent’s brief. This 
is called a “reply brief.”
17 What happens after all the briefs have 
been filed?
Once all the briefs have been filed or the time to file them 
has passed, the appellate division will notify you of the 
date for oral argument in your case. 
18 What is “oral argument”?
“Oral argument” is the parties’ chance to explain their 
arguments to the appellate division judges in person. You 
do not have to participate in oral argument if you do not 
want to; you can notify the appellate division that you want 
to “waive” oral argument. If all parties waive oral 
argument, the judges will decide your appeal based on the 
briefs and the record that were submitted. But if one party 
waives oral argument and another party or parties does not, 
the appellate division will hold oral argument with the 
party or parties who did not waive it. 
If you do choose to participate in oral argument, you will 
have up to 10 minutes for your argument unless the 
appellate division orders otherwise. Remember that the 
judges will have already read the briefs, so you do not need 
to read your brief to the judges. It is more helpful to tell the 
judges what you think is most important in your appeal or 
ask the judges if they have any questions you could answer.
19 What happens after oral argument?
After oral argument is held (or the date it was scheduled 
passes if all the parties waive oral argument), the judges of 
the appellate division will make a decision about your 
appeal. The appellate division has 90 days after the date 
scheduled for oral argument to decide the appeal. The clerk 
of the court will mail you a notice of the appellate 
division’s decision.
20 What should I do if I want to give up my 
appeal?
If you decide you do not want to continue with your 
appeal, you must file a written document with the appellate 
division notifying it that you are giving up (this is called 
“abandoning”) your appeal. You can use Abandonment of 
Appeal (Limited Civil Case) (form APP-107) to file this 
notice in a limited civil case. You can get form APP-107 at 
any courthouse or county law library or online at 
www.courts.ca.gov/forms.
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INFORMATION FOR THE RESPONDENT
This section of this information sheet is written for the 
respondent—the party responding to an appeal filed by 
another party. It explains some of the rules and procedures 
relating to responding to an appeal in a limited civil case. 
The information may also be helpful to the appellant. 
21 I have received a notice of appeal from 
another party. Do I need to do anything?
You do not have to do anything. The notice of appeal 
simply tells you that another party is appealing the trial 
court’s decision. However, this would be a good time to get 
advice from a lawyer, if you want it. You do not have to 
have a lawyer; if you are an individual (not a corporation, 
for example), you are allowed to represent yourself in an 
appeal in a limited civil case. But appeals can be 
complicated and you will have to follow the same rules that 
lawyers have to follow. 
If you have any questions about the appeal procedures, you 
should talk to a lawyer. You must hire your own lawyer if 
you want one. You can get information about finding a 
lawyer on the Self-Help Guide to the California Courts at 
22 If the other party appealed, can I appeal 
too?
Yes. Even if another party has already appealed, you may 
still appeal the same judgment or order. This is called a 
“cross-appeal.” To cross-appeal, you must serve and file a 
notice of appeal. You can use Notice of Appeal/Cross-
Appeal—Limited Civil Case (form APP-102) to file this 
notice in a limited civil case. Please read the information 
for appellants about filing a notice of appeal, starting on 
page 2 of this information sheet, if you are considering 
filing a cross-appeal.
23 Is there a deadline to file a cross-appeal?
Yes. You must serve and file your notice of appeal within 
either the regular time for filing a notice of appeal 
(generally 30 days after mailing or service of Notice of 
Entry of the judgment or a file-stamped copy of the 
judgment) or within 10 days after the clerk of the trial court 
mails notice of the first appeal, whichever is later.
24 I have received a notice designating the 
record on appeal from another party. Do I 
need to do anything?
You do not have to do anything. A notice designating the 
record on appeal lets you know what kind of official record 
the appellant has asked to be sent to the appellate division. 
Depending on the kind of record chosen by the appellant, 
however, you may have the option to:
Add to what is included in the record
Participate in preparing the record or
Ask for a copy of the record
Look at the appellant’s notice designating the record on 
appeal to see what kind of record the appellant has chosen 
and read about that form of the record in the response to 
question  13  above. Then read below for what your options 
are when the appellant has chosen that form of the record.
a. Reporter's transcript
If the appellant is using a reporter’s transcript, you 
have the option of asking for additional proceedings 
to be included in the reporter’s transcript. To do this, 
within 10 days after the appellant files its notice 
designating the record on appeal, you must serve and 
file a notice designating additional proceedings to be 
included in the reporter’s transcript. 
Whether or not you ask for additional proceedings to 
be included in the reporter’s transcript, you must 
generally pay a fee if you want a copy of the 
reporter’s transcript. The trial court clerk or reporter 
will send you a notice stating the cost of preparing a 
copy of the reporter’s transcript. If you want a copy 
of the reporter’s transcript, you must deposit this 
amount (and a fee for the trial court) or one of the 
substitutes allowed by rule 8.834 with the
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trial court clerk within 10 days after this notice is 
sent. (See rule 8.834 for more information about this 
deposit and the permissible substitutes, such as a 
waiver of this deposit signed by the court reporter.) 
Unlike the fee for preparing a clerk’s transcript, the 
court cannot waive the fee for preparing a reporter’s 
transcript. A special fund, called the Transcript 
Reimbursement Fund, may be able to help pay for 
the transcript. You can get information about this 
fund at
If the appellant elects not to use a reporter’s 
transcript, you may not designate a reporter’s 
transcript without first getting an order from the 
appellate division.
b. Agreed statement
If you and the appellant agree to prepare an agreed 
statement (a summary of the trial court proceedings 
that is agreed to by the parties), you and the appellant 
will need to reach an agreement on that statement 
within 30 days after the appellant files its notice 
designating the record.
c. Statement on appeal
If the appellant elects to use a statement on appeal (a 
summary of the trial court proceedings that is 
approved by the trial court), the appellant will send 
you a proposed statement to review. You will have 
10 days from the date the appellant sent you this 
proposed statement to serve and file suggested 
changes (called “amendments”) that you think are 
needed to make sure that the statement gives an 
accurate summary of the testimony and other 
evidence relevant to the issues the appellant stated 
the appellant is making on appeal. “Serve and file” 
means that you must: 
The reporter will not prepare a copy 
of the reporter’s transcript for you unless you deposit 
the cost of the transcript, or one of the permissible 
substitutes, or your application for payment by the 
Transcript Reimbursement Fund is approved.
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, deliver, or 
electronically send (“serve”) the proposed 
amendments to the appellant in the way required 
by law. If the proposed amendments are mailed or 
personally delivered, it must be by someone who 
is not a party to the case—so not you.
Make a record that the proposed amendments have 
been served. This record is called a “proof of 
service.” Proof of Service (form APP-109) or 
Proof of Electronic Service (form APP-109E) can 
be used to make this record. The proof of service 
must show who served the proposed amendments, 
who was served with the proposed amendments, 
how the proposed amendments were served (by 
mail, in person, or electronically), and the date the 
proposed amendments were served.
File the original proposed amendments and the 
proof of service with the trial court. You should 
make a copy of the proposed amendments you are 
planning to file for your own records before you 
file them with the court. It is a good idea to bring 
or mail an extra copy of the proposed amendments 
to the clerk when you file your original and ask the 
clerk to stamp this copy to show that the original 
has been filed. 
You can get more information about how to serve 
court papers and proof of service from What Is Proof 
of Service? (form APP-109-INFO) and on the Self-
Help Guide to the California Courts at 
d. Clerk's transcript or appendix
Clerk’s transcript: If the appellant is using a clerk’s 
transcript, you have the option of asking the clerk to 
include additional documents in the clerk’s transcript.
To do this, within 10 days after the appellant serves 
its notice designating the record on appeal, you must 
serve and file a notice designating additional 
documents to be included in the clerk’s transcript. 
You may use Respondent’s Notice Designating 
Record on Appeal—Limited Civil Case  (form  
APP-110) for this purpose. 
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Whether or not you ask for additional documents to 
be included in the clerk’s transcript, you must pay a 
fee if you want a copy of the clerk’s transcript. The 
trial court clerk will send you a notice stating the cost 
for a copy of the clerk’s transcript. If you want a 
copy, you must deposit this amount with the court 
within 10 days after the clerk’s notice was sent.
If you cannot afford to pay this cost, you can ask the 
court to waive it. To do this, you must fill out and file 
a Request to Waive Court Fees (form FW-001). You 
can get form FW-001 at any courthouse or county 
law library or online at www.courts.ca.gov/forms. 
The court will review this application and decide if 
you are eligible for a fee waiver. The clerk will not 
prepare a copy of the clerk’s transcript for you unless 
you deposit payment for the cost or obtain a fee 
waiver.
Appendix: If the appellant is using an appendix, and 
you and the appellant have not agreed to a joint 
appendix, you may prepare a separate respondent’s 
appendix. See pages 8–9 for more information about 
preparing an appendix.
If the appellant chooses a clerk’s transcript but does 
not have a waiver of the fee for a clerk’s transcript, 
you can choose an appendix instead of a clerk’s 
transcript, and the appeal will proceed by appendix. 
To choose an appendix, you can fill out and file 
Respondent’s Notice Designating Record on Appeal
—Limited Civil Case  (form APP-110) within 10 days 
after the appellant’s notice designating the record on 
appeal is filed.
25 What happens after the official record 
has been prepared?
As soon as the record on appeal is complete, the clerk of 
the trial court will send it to the appellate division. When 
the appellate division receives this record, it will send you 
a notice telling you when you must file your brief in the 
appellate division.
A brief is a party’s written description of the facts in the 
case, the law that applies, and the party’s argument about 
the issues being appealed. If you are represented by a 
lawyer, your lawyer will prepare your brief. If you are not 
represented by a lawyer in your appeal, you will have to 
You may, but are not required to, fill out Respondent’s 
Brief—Limited Civil Case  (form APP-201) and use it as 
your answering brief. You can get more information about 
using this form as your answering brief from How to Use 
Form APP-201 in Limited Civil Cases (form 
APP-201-INFO).
prepare your brief yourself. You should read rules 8.882– 
8.884 of the California Rules of Court, which set out the 
requirements for preparing, serving, and filing briefs in 
limited civil appeals, including requirements for the format 
and length of these briefs. You can get these rules at any 
courthouse or county law library or online at 
The appellant serves and files the first brief, called an 
“appellant’s opening brief.” You may, but are not required 
to, respond by serving and filing a respondent’s brief 
within 30 days after the appellant’s opening brief is filed. 
“Serve and file” means that you must:
Have somebody over 18 years old mail, deliver, or 
electronically send (“serve”) the brief to the other 
parties in the way required by law. If the brief is mailed 
or personally delivered, it must be by someone who is 
not a party to the case—so not you.
Make a record that the brief has been served. This 
record is called a “proof of service.” Proof of Service 
(form APP-109) or Proof of Electronic Service  (form  
APP-109E) can be used to make this record. The proof 
of service must show who served the brief, who was 
served with the brief, how the brief was served (by mail, 
in person, or electronically), and the date the brief was 
served.
File the original brief and the proof of service with the 
appellate division. You should make a copy of the brief 
you are planning to file for your own records before you 
file it with the court. It is a good idea to bring or mail an 
extra copy of the brief to the clerk when you file your 
original and ask the clerk to stamp this copy to show 
that the original has been filed. You can get more 
information about how to serve court papers and proof 
of service from What Is Proof of Service? (form 
APP-109-INFO) and on the Self-Help Guide to the 
California Courts at www.courts.ca.gov/selfhelp-
serving.htm.
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You and the other parties can agree (stipulate) to extend the 
time for filing this brief by up to 30 days (see rule 8.882(b) 
for requirements for these agreements). You can also ask 
the court to extend the time for filing this brief if you can 
show good cause for an extension (see rule 8.811(b) for a 
list of the factors the court will consider in deciding 
whether there is good cause for an extension). You may 
use Application for Extension of Time to File Brief—
Limited Civil Case (form APP-106) to ask the court for an 
extension.
If you do not file a respondent’s brief, the appellant does 
not automatically win the appeal. The court will decide the 
appeal on the record, the appellant’s brief, and any oral 
argument by the appellant. Remember that an appeal is not 
a new trial. The appellate division will not consider new 
evidence, such as the testimony of new witnesses or new 
exhibits, so do not include any new evidence in your brief. 
If you file a respondent’s brief, the appellant then has an 
opportunity to serve and file another brief within 20 days 
replying to your brief. 
26 What happens after all the briefs have 
been filed?
Once all the briefs have been filed or the time to file them 
has passed, the court will notify you of the date for oral 
argument in your case.
“Oral argument” is the parties’ chance to explain their 
arguments to appellate division judges in person. You do 
not have to participate in oral argument if you do not want 
to; you can notify the appellate division that you want to 
“waive” oral argument. If all parties waive oral argument, 
the judges will decide the appeal based on the briefs and 
the record that were submitted. But if one party waives oral 
argument and another party or parties does not, the 
appellate division will hold oral argument with the party or 
parties who did not waive it.
After oral argument is held (or the scheduled date passes if 
all parties waive argument), the judges of the appellate 
division will make a decision about the appeal. The 
appellate division has 90 days after oral argument to decide 
the appeal. The clerk of the court will mail you a notice of 
the appellate division’s decision.
APP-101-INFO,  Page 15 of 15

Retrieval chunks

• #1

  Form ID: APP-101-INFO Title: Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases Effective Date: 2025-01-01 Mandatory Form: no Info Page: https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/APP-101-INFO Primary Download URL: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app101info.pdf Form Detail Page: Information on Appeal Pro…

• #2

  trial. The appellate division will not consider new evidence, such as the testimony of new witnesses or new exhibits. The appellate division’s job is to review a record of what happened in the trial court and the trial court’s decision to see if certain kinds of legal errors were made: For information about appea…

• #3

  represent yourself in an appeal in a limited civil case. But appeals can be complicated and you will have to follow the same rules that lawyers have to follow. If you have any questions about the appeal procedures, you should talk to a lawyer. If you decide not to use a lawyer, you must put your address, telepho…

• #4

  Appoint a receiver Are made after final judgment in the case (You can get a copy of Code of Civil Procedure section 904.2 at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes.xhtml.) 7 How do I start my appeal? First, you must serve and file a notice of appeal. The notice of appeal tells the other party or parties in the c…

• #5

  circumstances listed in rule 8.823, you must file your notice of appeal within 30 days after the trial court clerk or a party serves either a document called a “Notice of Entry” of the trial court judgment or a file-stamped copy of the judgment or within 90 days after entry of the judgment, whichever is earlier. …

• #6

  order may be started against you. 12 What do I need to do after I file my notice of appeal? You must ask the clerk of the trial court to prepare and send the official record of what happened in the trial court in your case to the appellate division. Since the appellate division judges were not there to see what…

• #7

  There are three parts of the official record: A record of what was said in the trial court (this is called the “oral proceedings”) A record of the documents filed in the trial court (other than exhibits) Exhibits that were admitted in evidence, refused, or lodged (temporarily placed with the court) in the trial …

• #8

  APP-101-INFO Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases If the proceedings were officially electronically recorded, the trial court can have a transcript prepared from that recording or, if the court has a local rule permitting this and you and the other party agree (“stipulate”) to this, you can us…

• #9

  trial court clerk within 10 days after this notice is sent. (See rule 8.834 for more information about this deposit and the permissible substitutes, such as a waiver of this deposit signed by the court reporter.) Unlike the fee for filing the notice of appeal and the costs for preparing a clerk’s transcript, the…

• #10

  court you wanted to use a transcript of an official electronic recording— Appellant’s Notice Designating Record on Appeal (form APP-103) —to do this. Cost: The appellant is responsible for paying the court for the cost of either (a) preparing a transcript or (b) making a copy of the official electronic recordin…

• #11

  prepared and the rest of the record is complete, the clerk will send it to the appellate division. (3) Agreed statement Description: An agreed statement is a written summary of the trial court proceedings agreed to by all the parties. (See rule 8.836 of the California Rules of Court.) When available: If the tri…

• #12

  that it may take more of your time to prepare a statement on appeal than to use either a reporter’s transcript or official electronic recording, if they are available). Contents: A statement on appeal must include: A statement of the points you (the appellant) are making on appeal; A summary of the trial court’…

• #13

  before you file it with the court. It is a good idea to bring or mail an extra copy of the proposed statement to the clerk when you file your original and ask the clerk to stamp this copy to show that the original has been filed. You can get more information about how to serve court papers and proof of service f…

• #14

  A clerk’s transcript or an appendix The original trial court file or An agreed statement Read below for more information about these options. (1) Clerk's transcript or appendix Description: A clerk’s transcript is a record of the documents filed in the trial court prepared by the clerk of the trial court. An a…

• #15

  that your fees in this case have already been waived by the court. Completion and delivery: After the cost of preparing the clerk’s transcript has been paid or waived, the trial court clerk will compile the requested documents into a transcript format and, when the record on appeal is complete, will forward the…

• #16

  Give the court a copy of a court order showing that your fees in this case have already been waived by the court. Completion and delivery: After the cost of preparing the trial court file has been paid or waived and the record on appeal is complete, the trial court clerk will send the file and a list of the doc…

• #17

  the trial court will send it to the appellate division. When the appellate division receives the record, it will send you a notice telling you when you must file your brief in the appellate division. 15 What is a brief? Description: A “brief” is a party’s written description of the facts in the case, the law tha…

• #18

  (form APP-109) or Proof of Electronic Service (form APP-109E) can be used to make this record. The proof APP-101-INFO, Page 10 of 15 Rev. January 1, 2025 Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases APP-101-INFO Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases of service must show who served…

• #19

  to, file another brief replying to the respondent’s brief. This is called a “reply brief.” 17 What happens after all the briefs have been filed? Once all the briefs have been filed or the time to file them has passed, the appellate division will notify you of the date for oral argument in your case. 18 What is …

• #20

  respondent—the party responding to an appeal filed by another party. It explains some of the rules and procedures relating to responding to an appeal in a limited civil case. The information may also be helpful to the appellant. 21 I have received a notice of appeal from another party. Do I need to do anything? …

• #21

  Look at the appellant’s notice designating the record on appeal to see what kind of record the appellant has chosen and read about that form of the record in the response to question 13 above. Then read below for what your options are when the appellant has chosen that form of the record. a. Reporter's transcri…

• #22

  approved by the trial court), the appellant will send you a proposed statement to review. You will have 10 days from the date the appellant sent you this proposed statement to serve and file suggested changes (called “amendments”) that you think are needed to make sure that the statement gives an accurate summar…

• #23

  documents to be included in the clerk’s transcript. You may use Respondent’s Notice Designating Record on Appeal—Limited Civil Case (form APP-110) for this purpose. APP-101-INFO, Page 13 of 15 Rev. January 1, 2025 Information on Appeal Procedures for Limited Civil Cases APP-101-INFO Information on Appeal Proc…

• #24

  represented by a lawyer in your appeal, you will have to You may, but are not required to, fill out Respondent’s Brief—Limited Civil Case (form APP-201) and use it as your answering brief. You can get more information about using this form as your answering brief from How to Use Form APP-201 in Limited Civil Cas…

• #25

  time for filing this brief by up to 30 days (see rule 8.882(b) for requirements for these agreements). You can also ask the court to extend the time for filing this brief if you can show good cause for an extension (see rule 8.811(b) for a list of the factors the court will consider in deciding whether there is g…