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2024 California Rules of Court

Rule 8.407. Record on appeal

(a) Normal record: clerk's transcript

The clerk's transcript must contain:

(1)  The petition;

(2)  Any notice of hearing;

(3)  All court minutes;

(4)  Any report or other document submitted to the court;

(5)  The jurisdictional and dispositional findings and orders;

(6)  The judgment or order appealed from;

(7)  Any application for rehearing;

(8)  The notice of appeal and any order pursuant to the notice;

(9)  Any transcript of a sound or sound-and-video recording tendered to the court under rule 2.1040;

(10)  Any application for additional record and any order on the application;

(11)  Any opinion or dispositive order of a reviewing court in the same case; and;

(12)  Any written motion or notice of motion by any party, with supporting and opposing memoranda and attachments, and any written opinion of the court.

(Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2017; previously amended effective January 1, 2007, and July 1, 2010.)

(b) Normal record: reporter's transcript

The reporter's transcript must contain any oral opinion of the court and:

(1)  In appeals from disposition orders, the oral proceedings at hearings on:

(A)  Jurisdiction;

(B)  Disposition;

(C)  Any motion by the appellant that was denied in whole or in part; and

(D)  In cases under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300 et seq., hearings:

(i)  On detention; and

(ii)  At which a parent of the child made his or her initial appearance.

(2)  In appeals from an order terminating parental rights under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300 et seq., the oral proceedings at all section 366.26 hearings.

(3)  In all other appeals, the oral proceedings at any hearing that resulted in the order or judgment being appealed.

(Subd (b) amended effective January 1, 2017; previously amended effective January 1, 2007.)

(c) Application in superior court for addition to normal record

(1)  Any party or Indian tribe that has intervened in the proceedings may apply to the superior court for inclusion of any oral proceedings in the reporter's transcript.

(2)  An application for additional record must describe the material to be included and explain how it may be useful in the appeal.

(3)  The application must be filed in the superior court with the notice of appeal or as soon thereafter as possible, and will be treated as denied if it is filed after the record is sent to the reviewing court.

(4)  The clerk must immediately present the application to the trial judge.

(5)  Within five days after the application if filed, the judge must order that the record include as much of the additional material as the judge finds proper to fully present the points raised by the applicant. Denial of the application does not preclude a motion in the reviewing court for augmentation under rule 8.155.

(6)  If the judge does not rule on the application within the time prescribed by (5), the requested material-other than exhibits-must be included in the clerk's transcript or the reporter's transcript without a court order.

(7)  The clerk must immediately notify the reporter if additions to the reporter's transcript are required under (5) or (6).

(Subd (c) amended effective July 1, 2010; previously amended effective January 1, 2007.)

(d) Agreed or settled statement

To proceed by agreed or settled statement, the parties must comply with rule 8.344 or 8.346, as applicable.

(Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2007.)

(e) Transmitting exhibits

Exhibits that were admitted in evidence, refused, or lodged may be transmitted to the reviewing court as provided in rule 8.224.

(Subd (f) relettered effective January 1, 2014; adopted as subd (f); previously amended effective January 1, 2007.)

Rule 8.407 amended effective January 1, 2017; adopted as rule 37.1 effective January 1, 2005; previously amended and renumbered as rule 8.404 effective January 1, 2007, and as rule 8.407 effective July 1, 2010; previously amended effective January 1, 2014.

Advisory Committee Comment

Rules 8.45-8.47 address the appropriate handling of sealed or confidential records that must be included in the record on appeal. Examples of confidential records include records of proceedings closed to inspection by court order under People v. Marsden (1970) 2 Cal.3d 118 and in-camera proceedings on a confidential informant.

Subdivision (a)(4). Examples of the documents that must be included in the clerk's transcript under this provision include all documents filed with the court relating to the Indian Child Welfare Act, including but not limited to all inquiries regarding a child under the Indian Child Welfare Act (Indian Child Inquiry Attachment [form ICWA-010(A)]), any Parental Notification of Indian Status (form ICWA-020), any Notice of Child Custody Proceeding for Indian Child (form ICWA-030) sent, any signed return receipts for the mailing of form ICWA-030, and any responses received to form ICWA-030.

Subdivision (b). Subdivision (b)(1) provides that only the reporter's transcript of a hearing that resulted in the order being appealed must be included in the normal record. This provision is intended to achieve consistent record requirements in all appeals of cases under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300, 601, or 602 and to reduce the delays and expense caused by transcribing proceedings not necessary to the appeal.

Subdivision (b)(1)(A) recognizes that findings made in a jurisdictional hearing are not separately appealable and can be challenged only in an appeal from the ensuing disposition order. The rule therefore specifically provides that a reporter's transcript of jurisdictional proceedings must be included in the normal record on appeal from a disposition order.

Subdivision (b)(1)(C) specifies that the oral proceedings on any motion by the appellant that was denied in whole or in part must be included in the normal record on appeal from a disposition order. Rulings on such motions usually have some impact on either the jurisdictional findings or the subsequent disposition order. Routine inclusion of these proceedings in the record will promote expeditious resolution of appeals of cases under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300, 601, or 602.

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