US · rules
7th Cir. R. 10
Preparation of Record in District Court Appeals
(a) Record Preparation Duties.
(1) Within 14 days of filing the notice of appeal in a case before it, the district court must ensure the district court docket is complete and made available electronically to the court of appeals.
(2) The clerk of the district court must prepare and hold any confidential record or exhibit not available electronically on the district court docket. If the court of appeals requests any such document, the district court must transmit it to the court of appeals.
(3) Counsel must ensure, within 21 days of filing the notice of appeal, that all electronic and non electronic documents necessary for review on appeal are on the district court docket.
(b) Correction or Modification of Record. A motion to correct or modify the record pursuant to Rule 10(e), Fed. R. App. P., or a motion to strike matter from the record on the ground that it is not properly a part thereof must be presented first to the district court. That court's order ruling on the motion must be included as part of the record and a notice of the order must be sent to the court of appeals.
(c) Order or Certification with Regard to Transcript. Counsel and court reporters are to utilize the form prescribed by this court when ordering transcripts or certifying that none will be ordered. For specific requirements, see Rules 10(b) and 11(b), Fed. R. App. P.
(d) Ordering Transcripts in Criminal Cases.
(1) Transcripts in Criminal Justice Act Cases. At the time of the return of a verdict of guilty or, in the case of a bench trial, an adjudication of guilt in a criminal case in which the defendant is represented by counsel appointed under the Criminal Justice Act (C.J.A.), counsel for the defendant must request a transcript of testimony and other relevant proceedings by completing a C.J.A. Form No. 24 and giving it to the district judge. If the district judge believes an appeal is probable, the judge must order transcribed so much of the proceedings as the judge believes necessary for an appeal. The transcript must be filed with the clerk of the district court within 40 days after the return of a verdict of guilty or, in the case of a bench trial, the adjudication of guilt or within seven days after sentencing, whichever occurs later. If the district judge decides not to order the transcript at that time, the judge must retain the C.J.A. Form No. 24 without ruling. If a notice of appeal is filed later, appointed counsel or counsel for a defendant allowed after trial to proceed on appeal in forma pauperis must immediately notify the district judge of the filing of a notice of appeal and file or renew the request made on C.J.A. Form No. 24 for a free transcript.
(2) Transcripts in Other Criminal Cases. Within 14 days after filing the notice of appeal in other criminal cases, the appellant or appellant's counsel must deposit with the court reporter the estimated cost of the transcript ordered pursuant to Rule 10(b), Fed. R. App. P., unless the district court orders that the transcript be paid for by the United States. A non-indigent appellant must pay a pro rata share of the cost of a transcript prepared at the request of an indigent co-defendant under the Criminal Justice Act unless the district court determines that fairness requires a different division of the cost. Failure to comply with this paragraph will be cause for dismissal of the appeal.
(e) Indexing of Transcript. The transcript of proceedings to be part of the record on appeal (and any copies prepared for the use of the court or counsel in the case on appeal) must be produced by the reporter with the pages consecutively numbered throughout. The transcript of proceedings must contain a suitable index, as well as the following information:
(1) An alphabetical list of witnesses, giving the pages on which the direct and each other examination of each witness begins.
(2) A list of exhibits by number, with a brief description of each exhibit indicating the nature of its contents, and with a reference to the pages of the transcript where each exhibit has been identified, offered, and received or rejected.
(3) A list of other significant portions of the trial such as opening statements, arguments to the jury, and instructions, with a reference to the page where each begins.
When the record includes transcripts of more than one trial or other distinct proceeding, and it would be cumbersome to apply this paragraph to all the transcripts taken together as one, the rule may be applied separately to each transcript of one trial or other distinct proceeding.
(f) Presentence Reports. The presentence report is part of the record on appeal in every criminal case. The district court should maintain this report under seal, unless it has already been placed in the public record in the district court. If the report is under seal, the report may not be included in the appendix to the brief or the separate appendix under Fed. R. App. P. 30 and Circuit Rule 30. Counsel of record may review the presentence report at the clerk's office but may not review the probation officer's written comments and any other portion submitted in camera to the trial judge.
(g) Effect of Omissions from the Record on Appeal. When a party's argument is countered by a contention of waiver for failure to raise the point in the trial court or before an agency, the party opposing the waiver contention must give the record cite where the point was asserted and also ensure that the record before the court of appeals contains the relevant document or transcript.
(h) Extension of Time for Preparation of Transcript. Any request by a court reporter for an extension of time longer than 30 days from the date the transcript was first ordered must be filed with the clerk of this court on a form prescribed by the court. The request must include the date the transcript was ordered, the reasons for both that request, and any previous requests for extensions of time, and a certificate that all parties or their counsel have been sent a copy of the request. If the request is for an extension of time longer than 60 days from the date the transcript was first ordered, it must include a statement from the district judge who tried the case or the chief judge of the district court that the request has been brought to that judge's attention and that steps are being taken to insure that all ordered transcripts will be promptly prepared.
Provenance
- Source
- uscourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-18
- Edition
- 2026-09-18
- Content hash
32eeae8f48091af7cff27be7eb56c9efb5ff53b58a844944f560eb69a2f8033c
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