What is a Notice of Appeal?
A Notice of Appeal is a document filed with the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court. It serves as notice to all litigants in a civil case that one of the parties is asking for a review of the lower courts decision. If the appeal is successful, the matter may be remanded to the trial court for additional proceedings including a new trial. The required information for a Notice of Appeal is detailed in Illinois Supreme Court Rule 303. Forms are available at the Customer Service Counter located in Room 801 of the Daley Center.
A notice of appeal is a written statement prepared by you that has the name of your case, the trial court docket number, and states your intention to appeal the judgment. The notice of appeal should have your name and the date of the judgment that you are appealing. See Exhibit 1. D. Do I have to do anything else when I file my notice of appeal? Yes. If there was a trial in your case in which people testified and evidence was taken, you will need to have a transcript of the trial. You should contact the trial court clerk’s office to get the information as to how to order the trial transcript and whom you must pay. If you are indigent, you may file a motion in the trial court, supported by a current affidavit of indigency, asking to have the cost of the transcript paid by the Commonwealth. If your case was decided just on the papers filed, for example motions, other pleadings, and perhaps exhibits, and no witnesses testified, it is not necessary to order a transcript. Whether or not you
