N.C. R. App. P. 18

As amended through June 18, 2024

Rule 18 - Taking Appeal; Record on Appeal-Composition and Settlement

(a)General. Appeals of right from administrative agencies, boards, commissions, or the Office of Administrative Hearings (referred to in these rules as "administrative tribunals") directly to the appellate division under N.C.G.S. § 7A-29 shall be in accordance with the procedures provided in these rules for appeals of right from the courts of the trial divisions, except as provided in this Article.

(b)Time and Method for Taking Appeals.

(1) The times and methods for taking appeals from an administrative tribunal shall be as provided in this Rule 18 unless the General Statutes provide otherwise, in which case the General Statutes shall control.

(2) Any party to the proceeding may appeal from a final decision of an administrative tribunal to the appropriate court of the appellate division for alleged errors of law by filing and serving a notice of appeal within thirty days after receipt of a copy of the final decision of the administrative tribunal. The final decision of the administrative tribunal is to be sent to the parties by Registered or Certified Mail. The notice of appeal shall specify the party or parties taking the appeal; shall designate the final administrative tribunal decision from which appeal is taken and the court to which appeal is taken; and shall be signed by counsel of record for the party or parties taking the appeal, or by any such party not represented by counsel of record.

(3) If a transcript of fact-finding proceedings is not made as part of the process leading up to the final administrative tribunal decision, then the parties may order transcripts using the procedures applicable to court proceedings in Rule 7.

(c)Composition of Printed Record. The printed record in appeals from any administrative tribunal shall contain:

(1) an index of the contents of the printed record, which shall appear as the first page thereof;

(2) a statement identifying the administrative tribunal from whose judgment, order, or opinion appeal is taken; the session at which the judgment, order, or opinion was rendered, or if rendered out of session, the time and place of rendition; and the party appealing;

(3) a copy of the summons with return, notice of hearing, or other documents showing jurisdiction of the administrative tribunal over persons or property sought to be bound in the proceeding, or a statement showing same;

(4) copies of all other notices, pleadings, petitions, or other documents required by law or rule to be filed with the administrative tribunal to present and define the matter for determination, including a Form 44 for all workers' compensation cases which originate from the Industrial Commission;

(5) a copy of any findings of fact and conclusions of law and a copy of the order, award, decision, or other determination of the administrative tribunal from which appeal was taken;

(6) so much of the litigation before the administrative tribunal or before any division, commissioner, deputy commissioner, or hearing officer of the administrative tribunal, set out in the form provided in Rule 9(c)(1), as is necessary for an understanding of all issues presented on appeal, or a statement specifying that the transcript of proceedings is being filed pursuant to Rule 9(c)(2) and (3);

(7) when the administrative tribunal has reviewed a record of proceedings before a division or an individual commissioner, deputy commissioner, or hearing officer of the administrative tribunal, copies of all items included in the record filed with the administrative tribunal which are necessary for an understanding of all issues presented on appeal;

(8) copies of all other documents filed and statements of all other proceedings had before the administrative tribunal or any of its individual commissioners, deputies, or divisions which are necessary to an understanding of all issues presented on appeal unless they appear in another component of the record on appeal;

(9) a copy of the notice of appeal from the administrative tribunal, of all orders establishing time limits relative to the perfecting of the appeal, of any order finding a party to the appeal to be a civil pauper, and of any agreement, notice of approval, or order settling the record on appeal;

(10) proposed issues on appeal relating to the actions of the administrative tribunal, set out as provided in Rule 10;

(11) a statement, when appropriate, that the record of proceedings was made with an electronic recording device;

(12) a statement, when appropriate, that a supplement compiled pursuant to Rule 18(d)(3) is being filed separately;

(13) any order (issued prior to the filing of the record on appeal) ruling upon any motion by an attorney who is not licensed to practice law in North Carolina to be admitted pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 84-4.1 to appear in the appeal. In the event such a motion is filed prior to the filing of the printed record but has not yet been ruled upon when the printed record is filed, the printed record shall include a statement that such a motion is pending and the date that motion was filed;

(14) a statement, when appropriate, that copies of exhibits, copies of other items, or both have been included in the record on appeal pursuant to Rule 9(d) and are being filed separately; and

(15) a brief description of each original exhibit and other original item that has been included in the record on appeal pursuant to Rule 9(d).

(d)Settling the Record on Appeal. The record on appeal may be settled by any of the following methods:

(1)By Agreement. Within forty-five days after all of the transcripts that have been ordered according to Rule 7 and Rule 18(b)(3) are delivered or forty-five days after the last notice of appeal is filed, whichever is later, the parties may by agreement entered in the printed record settle a proposed record on appeal that has been prepared by any party in accordance with this Rule 18 as the record on appeal.

(2)By Appellee's Approval of Appellant's Proposed Record on Appeal. If the record on appeal is not settled by agreement under Rule 18(d)(1), the appellant shall, within the same times provided, serve upon all other parties a proposed record on appeal constituted in accordance with the provisions of Rule 18(c). Within thirty days after service of the proposed record on appeal upon an appellee, that appellee may serve upon all other parties a notice of approval of the proposed record on appeal or objections, amendments, or a proposed alternative record on appeal. Amendments or objections to the proposed record on appeal shall be set out in a separate document and shall specify any item(s) for which an objection is based on the contention that the item was not filed, served, submitted for consideration, admitted, or made the subject of an offer of proof, or that the content of a statement or narration is factually inaccurate. An appellant who objects to an appellee's response to the proposed record on appeal shall make the same specification in its request for judicial settlement. The formatting of the record on appeal and the order in which items appear in it is the responsibility of the appellant. Judicial settlement is not appropriate for disputes concerning only the formatting or the order in which items appear in the settled record on appeal. If all appellees within the times allowed them either serve notices of approval or fail to serve either notices of approval or objections, amendments, or proposed alternative records on appeal, appellant's proposed record on appeal thereupon constitutes the record on appeal.

(3)By Agreement, by Operation of Rule, or by Court Order After Appellee's Objection or Amendment. If any appellee timely serves amendments, objections, or a proposed alternative record on appeal, the record on appeal shall include each item that is either among those items required by Rule 18(c) or that is requested by any party to the appeal and agreed upon for inclusion by all other parties to the appeal, in the absence of contentions that the item was not filed, served, or offered into evidence. Additionally, if a party requests that an item be included in the record on appeal but not all parties to the appeal agree to its inclusion, then that item shall be filed by the appellant in a volume captioned "Rule 18(d)(3) Supplement" provided that any item not filed, served, submitted for consideration, admitted, or for which no offer of proof was tendered shall not be included in the record on appeal. Subject to the additional requirements of Rule 28(d), items in the Rule 18(d)(3) supplement may be cited and used by the parties like any other component of the record on appeal.

If a party does not agree to the wording of a statement or narration required or permitted by these rules, there shall be no judicial settlement to resolve the dispute unless the objection is based on a contention that the statement or narration concerns an item that was not filed, served, submitted for consideration, admitted, or tendered in an offer of proof, or that a statement or narration is factually inaccurate. Instead, the objecting party is permitted to have inserted in the settled record on appeal a concise counter-statement. Parties are strongly encouraged to reach agreement on the wording of statements in records on appeal.

The Rule 18(d)(3) supplement shall contain an index of the contents of the supplement, which shall appear as the first page thereof. The Rule 18(d)(3) supplement shall be paginated consecutively with the pages of the printed record, the first page of the supplement to bear the next consecutive number following the number of the last page of the printed record. These pages shall be referred to as "record supplement pages," and shall be cited as "(R S p ___)." The contents of the supplement should be arranged, so far as practicable, in the order in which they occurred or were filed in the administrative tribunal. If a party does not agree to the inclusion or specification of an exhibit or transcript in the printed record, the printed record shall include a statement that such items are separately filed along with the supplement.

If any party to the appeal contends that materials proposed for inclusion in the record or for filing therewith pursuant to these rules were not filed, served, submitted for consideration, admitted, or offered into evidence, or that a statement or narration permitted by these rules is not factually accurate, then that party, within ten days after expiration of the time within which the appellee last served with the appellant's proposed record on appeal might have served amendments, objections, or a proposed alternative record on appeal, may in writing request that the administrative tribunal convene a conference to settle the record on appeal. A copy of that request, endorsed with a certificate showing service on the administrative tribunal, shall be served upon all other parties. Each party shall promptly provide to the administrative tribunal a reference copy of the record items, amendments, or objections served by that party in the case.

The functions of the administrative tribunal in the settlement of the record on appeal are to determine whether a statement permitted by these rules is not factually accurate, to settle narrations of proceedings under Rule 18(c)(6), and to determine whether the record accurately reflects material filed, served, submitted for consideration, admitted, or made the subject of an offer of proof, but not to decide whether material desired in the record by either party is relevant to the issues on appeal, non-duplicative, or otherwise suited for inclusion in the record on appeal.

Upon receipt of a request for settlement of the record on appeal, the administrative tribunal shall send written notice to counsel for all parties setting a place and time for a conference to settle the record on appeal. The conference shall be held not later than fifteen days after service of the request upon the administrative tribunal. The administrative tribunal or a delegate appointed in writing by the administrative tribunal shall settle the record on appeal by order entered not more than twenty days after service of the request for settlement upon the administrative tribunal. If requested, the settling official shall return the record items submitted for reference during the settlement process with the order settling the record on appeal.

When the administrative tribunal is a party to the appeal, the administrative tribunal shall forthwith request the Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals or the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, as appropriate, to appoint a referee to settle the record on appeal. The referee so appointed shall proceed after conference with all parties to settle the record on appeal in accordance with the terms of these rules and the appointing order.

If any appellee timely serves amendments, objections, or a proposed alternative record on appeal, and no judicial settlement of the record is sought, the record is deemed settled as of the expiration of the ten-day period within which any party could have requested judicial settlement of the record on appeal under this Rule 18(d)(3).

Nothing herein shall prevent settlement of the record on appeal by agreement of the parties at any time within the times herein limited for settling the record by administrative tribunal decision.

(e)Further Procedures and Additional Materials in the Record on Appeal. Further procedures for perfecting and prosecuting the appeal shall be as provided by these rules for appeals from the courts of the trial divisions.

(f)Extensions of Time. The times provided in this rule for taking any action may be extended in accordance with the provisions of Rule 27(c).

N.c. R. App. P. 18

287 N.C. 671; 292 N.C. 739; 301 N.C. 732; 313 N.C. 778; 324 N.C. 613; 327 N.C. 671; 345 N.C. 765; 347 N.C. 679; 354 N.C. 609; 358 N.C. 837; 361 N.C. 732; 363 N.C. 901; 369 N.C. 763; 371 N.C. 974; 375 N.C. 1034; 379 N.C. 694.
Amended November 17, 2020, effective 1/1/2021; amended 1/14/2021; amended October 13, 2021, effective 1/1/2022; amended June 18, 2024, effective 6/18/2024.