(a) File Book. The clerk of court shall consolidate the calendars of civil actions in the circuit court and provide for the filing and keeping of papers with respect to civil actions in the manner provided in this rule. The clerk of court for each county shall keep a Calendar, hereinafter referred to as "File Book," relating to civil actions in the circuit court in which there shall be entered and cross-indexed all proceedings of a civil nature which are instituted in the circuit civil court for the county or are appealed to that court from a magistrate's court, municipal court, other inferior court, or any administrative agency for which provision is made for an appeal to the circuit court. The clerk of court shall maintain only one file book for the circuit civil court as required by this rule.
Rule 79.Calendar of civil actions; File book
Group X: Courts and Clerks · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified July 13, 2026
In one sentenceRule 79 requires each circuit court clerk to maintain a consolidated civil action "File Book" with a uniform numbering system and jury designation for every filed case, bars a case from being heard until it is entered and its pleadings filed, restricts who may make entries, requires a motion calendar, and specifies the only three ways a listed action may be marked dismissed or ended.
Full Text of Rule 79
(1) Civil Action Number. When a summons and complaint or notice of intention to appeal to the circuit court are filed, the action or appeal shall receive a number in keeping with the numbering system approved by the Supreme Court by order dated March 11, 1974, as now or hereafter amended, and thereafter all papers filed in the proceeding shall be similarly numbered and kept together in a file bearing the same number.
(2) Notice of Jury Matters. The plaintiff at the time of filing the complaint in any proceeding shall inform the clerk of court of the nature of the issue and shall designate whether the case shall be tried non-jury or by a jury.
(c) Entry Required. No jury or nonjury action and no appeal to the circuit civil court from a magistrate's court, municipal court, other inferior court, or any administrative agency, whether for interlocutory action or final disposition, shall be heard by the court until the action has been first entered in the file book and all pleadings in the action filed with the clerk of court.
(d) Entries on File Book. Entries may be made on the file book only by a judge of the court or by the clerk of court or his deputy.
(e) Motion Calendar. In addition to the file book, each clerk of court shall maintain a motion calendar in such form as prescribed by the Office of South Carolina Court Administration. The clerk of court shall place on the motion calendar all pending motions and other matters requiring a summary hearing before the judge. The motion calendar shall contain the case number, date of request, name of the action, attorneys involved and the nature of the motion to be presented.
(f) Notice or Order of Dismissal . No action listed in the file book which thereafter is settled or disposed of in any manner, shall be dismissed, marked ended, or stricken from the file book unless and until:
(1) plaintiff shall file and serve a notice of dismissal or stipulation of dismissal pursuant to the provisions of Rule 41; or
(2) counsel in the action shall have prepared and filed an order signed by the appropriate judge, or the clerk of court pursuant to the provisions of Section 15-35-30, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, and bearing the written consent of all interested parties to the action showing that it has been ended; or
(3) dismissal is ordered by the court. The clerk of court shall bring the file book forward from time to time as may be necessary.
(g) Failure to Comply. Failure to comply with the requirements of this rule shall subject the party so failing to penalties as for contempt of court; which contempt shall be enforced by the court on motion of any aggrieved party or by the court on its own motion.
Notes
Note: This Rule 79 together with Rule 40 preserves generally present Circuit Court Rule 26, as amended through 1981 by the Supreme Court except that references to roster meetings to be called by the clerk of court are eliminated. Rule numbers and paragraph numbers are changed to conform to the numbering system of these Rules, and the word "action" is substituted for the word "case" to conform to Rule 2.
Note to 1986 Amendment: These amendments [to Rules 79(b)(2) and (e)] on responsibilities for notifying the clerk of the type of trial requested, and the placing of all summary matters on the motion calendar are designed to improve the administration of the dockets.
Editor's Note: Section 15-35-30, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, was repealed by Act No. 100 of 1985. See Rule 41(a) for provisions on voluntary dismissal, however.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 79 is the backbone of how circuit court clerks track civil litigation. Subsection (a) requires each county's clerk to keep a single "File Book" that consolidates the calendars of civil actions, cross-indexing every civil proceeding filed in that county's circuit civil court, including appeals from a magistrate's court, municipal court, other inferior court, or an administrative agency. Subsection (b) assigns each summons and complaint, or notice of intention to appeal, a case number under the statewide numbering system, and requires the plaintiff, at the time of filing, to tell the clerk whether the case will be tried with or without a jury.
Subsection (c) makes entry in the file book and filing of all pleadings a precondition to a hearing — no jury or nonjury action, and no appeal to circuit civil court, whether interlocutory or final, can be heard until that has happened. Subsection (d) limits who may make entries in the file book to a judge of the court or the clerk (or the clerk's deputy), and subsection (e) requires a separate motion calendar listing the case number, date of request, name of the action, involved attorneys, and the nature of each pending motion or matter needing a summary hearing.
Subsection (f) is the closing-out mechanism: a listed action cannot be dismissed, marked ended, or stricken from the file book unless a notice or stipulation of dismissal is filed under Rule 41, an order signed by the appropriate judge (or, formerly, the clerk under a statute the official commentary notes was repealed in 1985 — see Rule 41(a) for the current voluntary-dismissal provisions) is filed with the consent of all interested parties, or the court itself orders the dismissal. Subsection (g) makes noncompliance with the rule punishable as contempt, enforceable on motion of an aggrieved party or by the court on its own motion.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the File Book?
It is the consolidated calendar each circuit court clerk keeps for civil actions in that county, cross-indexing every civil proceeding filed there, including qualifying appeals from lower courts and agencies.
When do I have to tell the clerk whether I want a jury trial?
At the time you file the complaint, you must inform the clerk of the nature of the issue and designate whether the case will be tried non-jury or by jury.
Can a case be heard before it is entered in the file book?
No. Rule 79(c) bars any jury or nonjury action, and any qualifying appeal, from being heard until the action has been entered in the file book and all pleadings have been filed with the clerk.
Who is allowed to make entries in the file book?
Only a judge of the court, the clerk of court, or the clerk's deputy.
How can a case listed in the file book be closed out?
Only in one of three ways: the plaintiff files and serves a notice or stipulation of dismissal under Rule 41, an order ending the case is signed by the appropriate judge with the written consent of all interested parties, or the court orders the dismissal itself.
What happened to the statute mentioned for clerk-signed dismissal orders?
The official commentary notes that Section 15-35-30 of the 1976 Code, referenced in subsection (f)(2), was repealed in 1985. Rule 41(a) is the current source for the provisions on voluntary dismissal.
What is the motion calendar for?
It lists all pending motions and other matters needing a summary hearing before the judge, showing the case number, date of request, name of the action, attorneys involved, and the nature of the motion.
Source & verification. Rule text, official Notes, and amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure,
adopted by the Supreme Court of South Carolina. Last verified July 13, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: file book circuit courtcivil action numbering system south carolinamotion calendar clerk of courtdismissing action from file bookjury nonjury designation at filing