Rule 80.Transcript or statement of evidence made part of record
Current through January 1, 2025 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 80 makes a certified trial or hearing transcript part of the case record once filed, sets what makes a transcript properly certified, lets a party correct transcript errors, allows a reconstructed statement of the proceedings when no transcript exists, and abolishes the old common-law 'bills and certificates of exception.'
(1)Trial or hearing transcript. A certified transcript of a stenographically or mechanically reported proceeding of a trial or hearing becomes a part of the record of the action when it is filed with the court during the pendency of the civil action or at any time afterward.
(2)Transcript of hearing before a commissioner. A certified transcript of a stenographically or mechanically reported hearing before a commissioner becomes a part of the record of the action if it is filed with the court before the action is submitted to the court for disposition of the report of the commissioner.
(b)Certifying transcript. A transcript of a trial or hearing must be deemed authenticated and prima facie a correct statement of the proceedings when:
(1)it is certified by an official court or authorized reporter to be an accurate transcript of the stenographically or mechanically recorded proceedings; and
(2)it states whether it includes all or only a part of the proceedings.
(c)Notice of filing. When a transcript of the proceedings at a trial or hearing is filed with the court, the party causing it to be filed shall promptly give notice thereof to all other parties.
(d)Making corrections. Any party may file a motion to correct an error in the transcript of a trial or hearing. Upon sufficient proof of error, the court shall direct that the transcript be corrected as designated by the court.
(e)Using statement of evidence of trial or hearing.
(1)Transcript not obtainable. When a stenographic or mechanical report of the proceedings of a trial or hearing before the court was not made or is not obtainable, any party to the action may prepare a statement of the proceedings from the best available means, including the party's recollection, for use instead of a transcript.
(2)Serving and objecting to statement. The statement shall be served upon all parties within a reasonable time after the hearing or trial. All other parties may serve objections or amendments thereto within 14 days after service of the statement upon them.
(3)Court to resolve objections. The statement, with the objections or proposed amendments, shall be submitted to the court for resolution. The court must decide the accuracy of the statement based upon all of the materials submitted, and when so approved with or without changes, such statement becomes a part of the record when it is signed by the judge and filed with the court.
(f)Bills and certificates of exception abolished. Bills and certificates of exception are abolished.
(g)Stenographic transcript as evidence. If stenographically or mechanically reported testimony at a hearing or trial is admissible in evidence at a later hearing or trial, the testimony may be proved by a transcript certified by the official court reporter or other authorized person who reported it.
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
A trial isn't just what happens in the courtroom — it's what makes it into the record afterward, and Rule 80 governs how that happens in West Virginia. A certified transcript of a stenographically or mechanically recorded trial, hearing, or commissioner's proceeding becomes part of the case record once it's filed with the court, and it counts as authenticated and presumptively accurate once a court reporter or authorized person certifies it's accurate and states whether it covers all or only part of the proceeding. Whoever files a transcript has to promptly notify every other party, and any party can move to correct an error in it, with the court directing the correction once the error is proven.
Sometimes no transcript exists at all — no stenographic or mechanical record was made, or it can't be obtained. Rule 80(e) lets a party reconstruct a statement of what happened from the best available means, including their own recollection, to stand in for a transcript. That statement gets served on every other party, who have 14 days to object or propose amendments; the court then resolves any dispute over its accuracy, and once approved (with or without changes) and signed by the judge, the statement becomes part of the record just like a transcript would.
Rule 80 closes with a piece of legal housekeeping: it abolishes the old common-law "bills and certificates of exception" that transcripts and this rule's statement-of-proceedings procedure have replaced. And a certified transcript of testimony from an earlier hearing or trial can itself be used as evidence later, if that testimony would otherwise be admissible.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does a trial transcript become part of the official case record?
Once a certified transcript is filed with the court, whether during the case or afterward.
What happens if no transcript of a hearing was ever made?
A party can prepare a statement of the proceedings from the best available means, including their own recollection, serve it on the other parties (who have 14 days to object), and once the court resolves any dispute and the judge signs it, that statement becomes part of the record like a transcript would.
Are "bills of exception" still used in West Virginia to preserve trial issues?
No. Rule 80(f) abolishes bills and certificates of exception — the transcript and statement-of-evidence procedures in this rule replace them.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure (W. Va. R. Civ. P. 80). 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:trial transcriptstatement of evidencecertifying a transcriptbills of exception abolished