Current through January 1, 2025 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 42 lets a court consolidate or jointly hear actions -- including ones pending before different judges or a magistrate court -- that share a common question of law or fact, and lets it order separate trials of particular claims or issues for convenience, to avoid prejudice, or to expedite and economize, while preserving any right to a jury trial.
(1)When two or more actions arising out of the same transaction or occurrence are pending before different circuit judges, or before a circuit judge and a magistrate court, the circuit judge before which the first such action was commenced shall order all the actions transferred to it or any other court before which any such action is pending.
(2)The circuit court to which the actions are transferred may order a joint hearing or trial of any or all of the matters in issue in any of the actions; it may order all the actions consolidated; and it may make such other orders concerning proceedings therein as may tend to avoid unnecessary costs or delay.
(3)Whenever one of the actions is pending before a magistrate court and a judgment is rendered by the magistrate court for $15.00 or less, such judgment of the magistrate court shall in no manner affect the other action pending in the circuit court; the doctrine of res judicata shall not apply to such judgment, nor shall any such judgment of the magistrate court be admissible in evidence in the trial of the other action pending in the circuit court.
(c)Separate Trials. For convenience, to avoid prejudice, or to expedite and economize, the court may order a separate trial of one or more separate issues, claims, crossclaims, counterclaims, or third-party claims. When ordering a separate trial, the court shall preserve any right to a jury trial.
Amendment History
The current West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure took effect January 1, 2025, as part of a rewrite that modernized the rules’ numbering and structure. West Virginia does not publish a per-rule amendment history inside the compiled rules text reproduced here. The text above is verified current through the source’s own January 1, 2025 update; for the underlying adopting order and any later amendments, see the West Virginia Judiciary’s compiled rules page.
Plain-English Summary
When separate cases overlap, Rule 42 lets the court bring them together instead of litigating the same questions twice. If pending actions — including magistrate-court appeals — share a common question of law or fact, the court can join them for a hearing or trial, consolidate them outright, or issue other orders to avoid unnecessary cost or delay.
That authority reaches across courts too. When related actions arising from the same transaction or occurrence are pending before different circuit judges, or before a circuit judge and a magistrate court, the judge with the earliest-filed case can order everything transferred to one court, which can then consolidate the actions or order a joint hearing. A small-claims quirk applies to magistrate-court judgments of $15 or less: that judgment doesn't affect the related circuit-court case at all — no res judicata effect, and it's not even admissible in the other trial.
Rule 42 also runs the other direction. For convenience, to avoid prejudice, or to expedite and economize, the court can split off one or more claims or issues into their own separate trial — while making sure any party's right to a jury trial survives the split.
Frequently Asked Questions
When can a court consolidate separate lawsuits?
When they involve a common question of law or fact — the court can join them for a hearing or trial, consolidate them outright, or issue other orders to avoid unnecessary cost or delay.
Can cases pending before different judges be consolidated?
Yes. When related actions arising from the same transaction are pending before different circuit judges, or a circuit judge and a magistrate court, the judge with the first-filed case can order everything transferred and consolidated.
Does a small magistrate-court judgment affect a related circuit-court case?
No. A magistrate-court judgment of $15 or less has no res judicata effect on the related circuit-court action and isn't even admissible in that trial.
If the court orders a separate trial of one claim, do I lose my right to a jury?
No. Rule 42(c) requires the court to preserve any right to a jury trial when ordering separate trials.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure (W. Va. R. Civ. P. 42). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia (W. Va. Const. art. VIII, § 3). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as:consolidating casesseparate trialsmagistrate court appeal consolidation