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King County Washington home

What are Clerk's Papers?

In the appellate court process, Clerk's Papers are the portion of the Superior Court case file that is identified (designated) by a party seeking review to be sent by the King County Superior Court (also referred to as the trial court) to the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court (also referred to as the appellate court) for purposes of an appeal or discretionary review. 

Designation of Clerk's Papers

Within 30 days of filing a notice of appeal or receiving notice granting discretionary review, the party seeking a review files a Designation of Clerk's Papers with the Superior Court Clerk's Office identifying the Superior Court case documents and trial exhibits to be sent by the Clerk to the appellate court. Review Washington Courts Rules of Appellate Procedure (RAP) 9.6.

When the Clerk's Office receives the designation, an index of requested items and a payment invoice will be sent to the parties on the case.  The party who filed the designation is responsible for payment.  The fee is for preparation of the Clerk's Papers set and delivery to the appellate court.

  • $0.50 per page and $25.00 for documents and exhibits designations
  • $25.00 for exhibit-only designations.

This fee is not waivable by the Clerk’s Fee Waiver process. Supplemental and Amended Designations are an additional standalone fee per designation. These designations, considered a new Copies of the Clerk's Papers, will not be available and delivery will not occur until these fees are paid.

Clerk's Papers Frequently Asked Questions

Your designation will be rejected by the clerk, the Clerk's Papers will not be prepared and a rejection notice will be sent to the designating party.

The total fee for a Clerk's Papers set depends on the page count. Per Rules of Appellate Procedure (RAP) 9.7(a): "The clerk of the trial court shall make copies at cost, not to exceed 50 cents per page, of those portions of the clerk's papers designated by the parties and prepare them for transmission to the appellate court." In addition, a transmittal of the record and exhibits fee of $25.00 is included for delivery to the appellate court (King County Code (KCC) 4A 630.030).

The designated clerk's papers will not be prepared and transmitted to the appellate court and in most cases, the appellate brief will be rejected by the appellate court.

Once payment of the invoice has been received by the clerk, you may request a copy of the Clerk's Papers by submitting a completed document request form, a copy of the index received, with a payment of $0.50 per page within the set, to the Clerk' Office. The copy can also be placed on a CD for an additional $20.00 if you prefer an electronic copy instead of paper copies.

Payment submission and pick-up address: King County Superior Court Clerk, Records Access, Clerk's Papers Section, 516 3rd Avenue, Rm E-609, Seattle, WA 98104

A Notice Authorizing Clerk to Terminate Preparation of Clerk's Papers must be filed. You will be responsible for any fees that accrued before the termination notice was filed.

A statement filed with the appellate court that arrangements have been made for the transcript of verbatim report of proceedings, per RAP 9.2(a). An official transcript is a written verbatim report of a court proceeding completed by a court-approved transcriber in accordance with procedures developed by the Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts and the King County Superior Court. A court-approved transcriber is a person approved by the Superior Court Clerk as qualified to prepare an official transcript of a recorded court proceeding. View a list of court-approved transcriptionists here.

Court hearings may be recorded electronically by an audio or video recorder. The court case minutes for the hearing (found in the case file) will identify the method of reporting or recording the hearing. The minutes also show the start and end times of the hearing and the courtroom number, which is important information when ordering a copy. For additional information on obtaining copies of electronically recorded hearings, click here.

 

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Rules of Appellate Procedure

The Washington State Court Rules of Appellate Procedure (RAP) are viewable online.

View the Washington Court's RAP Rules Flowchart.

 

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Appellate Case Processing Guide

The Washington Courts Appellate Case Processing Guide is a resource developed to assist litigants through the appellate process and includes a processing model and sample forms.

 

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Need Help?

If you have questions about the Clerk's Papers process, call 206-477-6760, email us or visit the office in-person: 

Superior Court Clerk's Office, Records Access, Clerk's Papers Section, 516 3rd Avenue, Rm E-609, Seattle, WA  98104