The Importance of the Court Record When Filing an Appeal in North Carolina

Spouses going through divorce proceedings in North Carolina may eventually have the option to file an appeal of a final order, but appealing a decision is not as easy as filing one or two documents. There are extensive requirements, and while some are relatively simple, like the requirement that the appeal be filed within 30 days, others, like the appellate court’s record, require strategic planning.

North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure

When filing an appeal, the record that is submitted to the Court of Appeals is a crucial component because this is what the court will base its determinations on. Rule 9(a) of the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure states that the appellate court’s review is based solely upon the appeal record, which includes the printed record, exhibits, transcripts, and any other supplemental or additional materials submitted according to the various other procedural rules. The appealing party’s brief and arguments may cite any of the documents they include in the record.

If you reference or discuss any documents not included in the record, the appellate court will not be able to consider the arguments that rely on the omitted documents.

Sapia v. Sapia

In the case of Sapia v. Sapia, Wife’s appeal was complicated by missing documentation and unnecessary records. She appealed from an equitable distribution order, but many complications arose when the appellate court began its review.

North Carolina requires pretrial orders to be entered in equitable distribution cases, but the appellate court noted that no pretrial order was included in their record. In addition to this omission, the transcript included in the record suggested there were equitable distribution affidavits and financial affidavits filed by the parties, but no affidavits were included in the Court of Appeals’ record. These affidavits would have listed assets and debts and included how Husband and Wife classified each piece of property, which would have been helpful in an appeal of equitable distribution.

Also excluded from the record was a Consent Order for Permanent Child Custody and Attorneys Fees and a spreadsheet that the parties and their counsel frequently referred to in the transcript, which made some of the testimony given in trial court impossible for the appellate court to understand.

Other complications

Complicating matters further, a Motion to Amend Judgment filed by Wife was included in the record sent to the Court of Appeals, but the trial court never ruled upon it, and there is a reference to an exhibit that is not attached for the appellate court’s review.

Wife also included a draft of an Order that was not clearly labeled and which had handwritten notations. It was not clear to the Court of Appeals who made the notations or when they were made. Therefore, the court could not rely on this document when considering Wife’s appeal.

Because Wife in Sapia omitted vital documents and included unnecessary information, the Court of Appeals considered dismissing her appeal. However, it ultimately decided dismissal was not appropriate and proceeded with consideration of the elements of her appeal it was able to rule on based on the record as provided.

Failure to submit an accurate and thorough record to the appellate court could result in the appeal being dismissed and, at the very least, an incomplete record does not allow the Court of Appeals to fully consider all of an appellant’s arguments.