Article III. Civil Appeals Rules · Part C. Record on Appeal · Last amended 2021 · Last verified July 20, 2026
In one sentenceRule 321 defines what makes up the record on appeal — the judgment, the notice of appeal, the entire common law record, and any report of proceedings — unless the parties or a court agree to something smaller.
Full Text of Ill. S. Ct. R. 321
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The record on appeal shall consist of the judgment appealed from, the notice of appeal, and the
entire original common law record, unless the parties stipulate for, or the trial court, after notice and hearing, or the reviewing court, orders less. The common law record includes every document filed, judgment, and order entered and any exhibit offered and filed by any party. Upon motion the reviewing court may order that other exhibits be included in the record. The record on appeal shall also include any report of proceedings prepared in accordance with Rule 323. There is no distinction between the common law record and the report of proceedings for the purpose of determining what is properly before the reviewing court.
Plain-English Summary
The record on appeal is what the reviewing court works from, and Rule 321 defines its default scope broadly: the judgment being appealed, the notice of appeal, and the entire common law record from the trial court — every document filed, every judgment and order entered, and any exhibit a party offered and filed. The reviewing court can also order that other exhibits, beyond what was formally filed, be added if a motion asks for it.
Parties aren't stuck with the whole record if they don't need it. They can stipulate to something smaller, or ask the trial or reviewing court to order a reduced record, which is common in appeals that turn on a narrow legal issue.
The rule folds in the report of proceedings — the transcript, prepared under Rule 323 — as part of the record on appeal, and it makes a point of saying there's no legal distinction between the common law record and the report of proceedings when it comes to deciding what's properly before the appellate court.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the record on appeal include by default?
The judgment appealed from, the notice of appeal, the entire common law record — every filed document, judgment, and order, plus filed exhibits — and any report of proceedings prepared under Rule 323.
Can the parties agree to use a smaller record than the entire common law record?
Yes. Rule 321 lets the parties stipulate to a reduced record, or lets the trial or reviewing court order one after notice and hearing.
Are exhibits automatically part of the record on appeal?
Exhibits a party offered and filed are included; other exhibits can be added only if the reviewing court orders it on motion.
Is there a legal difference between the common law record and the report of proceedings?
No. Rule 321 states there's no distinction between the two for purposes of what's properly before the reviewing court.
Where are the rules for preparing the transcript portion of the record?
Rule 323 governs the report of proceedings, which becomes part of the record on appeal under Rule 321.
Committee Comments and Commentary
(Revised 1979)
As originally adopted Rule 321 provided that the record on appeal consisted of “the judgment appealed from, the notice of appeal, and other parts of the trial court record designated in the praecipes.” (36 Ill. 2d R. 321.) Rule 322 set forth the procedure for the filing of praecipes by the parties designating the parts of the record to be included. In 1979 Rule 321 was amended to provide that unless the parties stipulate for less or the trial or reviewing court orders less, the entire original common law trial record will be transmitted to the reviewing court. Reference to praecipes was deleted, and Rule 322 was abrogated.
While Rule 321, as amended, permits the trial or the reviewing court, or the parties by stipulation, to order that less than the “entire original common law trial court record” be transmitted to the reviewing court, it makes it plain that such portions of the entire trial record as are transmitted should be original papers, and this is underscored by the deletion in Rule 324 of the provision permitting the trial or reviewing court to order otherwise, and the deletion in Rule 331 of the phrase “unless the record contains no original papers.”
(December 17, 1993)
This rule is amended to describe the contents of the common law record, including any documentary exhibits in the trial court, and to provide that the reviewing court upon motion may order that other exhibits, including physical exhibits and evidence, be included in the record on appeal.
Amendment History
Amended July 30, 1979, effective October 15, 1979; amended December 17, 1993, effective February 1, 1994; amended Sept. 29, 2021, eff. Oct. 1, 2021.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Committee Comments, and
amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Illinois Supreme Court Rules,
promulgated by the Supreme Court of Illinois. Last verified July 20, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as:record on appeal Illinoiscommon law record appealwhat goes in the appellate recordreduced record on appeal