Rule Text
(a) General rule.—The reproduced record shall contain the following:
(1) The relevant docket entries and any relevant related matter (see Pa.R.A.P. 2153 (docket entries and related matter)).
(2) Any relevant portions of the pleadings, charge or findings (see Pa.R.A.P. 2175(b) (order and opinions) which provides for a cross reference note only to orders and opinions reproduced as part of the brief of appellant).
(3) Any other parts of the record to which the parties wish to direct the particular attention of the appellate court.
(4) The certificate of compliance required by Pa.R.A.P. 127.
(b) Immaterial formal matters.—Immaterial formal matters (captions, subscriptions, acknowledgments, etc.) shall be omitted.
(c) Effect of reproduction of record.—The fact that parts of the record are not included in the reproduced record shall not prevent the parties or the appellate court from relying on such parts.
(d) ‘‘Confidential Information’’ and ‘‘Confidential Documents’’, as those terms are defined in the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, shall appear in the reproduced record in the same manner and format as they do in the original record.
Amendment history: The provisions of this Rule 2152 amended through December 1, 1982, effective December 1, 1982, 12 Pa.B. 4332; amended January 5, 2018, effective January 6, 2018, 48 Pa.B. 461; amended June 1, 2018, effecive July 1, 2018, 48 Pa.B. 3517. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (389998) to (389999).
Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)
This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
When you appeal a court case in Pennsylvania, you have to put together something called a "reproduced record." This is a package of important documents from your case that helps the appeals court understand what happened. It should include the docket entries, relevant parts of any pleadings or court findings, and any other parts of the case record you want the court to pay attention to.
You do not need to include every single document from the original case. Unimportant details like cover pages, signatures, and acknowledgments can be left out. Just because something is not in the reproduced record does not mean it cannot be used. Both sides and the court can still look at parts of the original record even if they were not included in the package.
If any documents in the original case were marked as confidential, they must stay confidential in the reproduced record too. Whatever privacy protections applied before still apply here.
Committee Notes
The general rule has long been that evidence which has no relation to or connection with the questions involved must not be reproduced. See former Supreme Court Rule 44, former Superior Court Rule 36 and former Commonwealth Court Rule 88. See also, e.g., Shapiro v. Malarkey, 122 A. 341, 342 (Pa. 1923); Sims v. Pennsylvania R.R. Co., 123 A. 676, 679 (Pa. 1924).
See Pa.R.A.P. 2189 for procedure in cases involving the death penalty.
The Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (‘‘Public Access Policy’’) does not apply retroactively to pleadings, documents, or other legal papers filed prior to the effective date of the Public Access Policy. Reproduced records may therefore contain pleadings, documents, or legal papers that do not comply with the Public Access Policy if they were originally filed prior to the effective date of the Public Access Policy.
