Home › South Carolina › South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure › Rule 72

Court Rules Network • courtrules.net

SCRCP 72

Not legal advice. Verify against official sources before relying on this text in any legal matter.

Rule 72 Judgments and Orders Subject to Appeal

IX. Appeals and Arbitration

← Previous Rule 71.1: Post-conviction Relief Actions Next → Rule 73: Procedure on Appeal to Supreme Court or Court of Appeals

Rule Text

Appeal may be taken, as provided by law, from any final judgment or appealable order.

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

Here's a plain English summary of this rule:

If you lose part or all of your case, you have the right to appeal, but only in certain situations. You can appeal a final judgment, which means the court has completely wrapped up the case and there's nothing left to decide. You can also appeal certain other orders the court makes along the way, as long as the law says those orders can be appealed.

This rule doesn't let you appeal every single decision a judge makes during a case. Many rulings happen before the case is finished, and those usually aren't appealable right away. You typically have to wait until the whole case is resolved, unless the specific order you're upset about falls into a category the law allows you to challenge immediately.

The main point is this: not every court decision can be appealed right when it happens. You need to know whether the ruling you disagree with counts as a "final judgment" or an "appealable order" under the law before you try to take your case to a higher court.

Committee Notes

Note:

This Rule 72 parallels, in part, S.C. Code § 14-3-330, but is designed to reduce appeals from interlocutory or intermediate orders in an action. It accords with the modern decisions of the Supreme Court narrowing "dilatory appeals" from such interlocutory orders as grant or deny motions addressed to the pleadings, motions at trial, and the like. All such questions are left to the appeal from final judgment or order of dismissal. There is no conflict with the Supreme Court jurisdictional statutes and all statutory rights to appeal are preserved specifically by subdivision (6).

Note to 1989 Amendment:

The jurisdiction of all courts is determined by the Constitution, the jurisdictional statutes, and the case law interpreting those provisions. Rule 72 as originally written created confusion and unintended arguments that the civil rules changed the scope of appeal. Rule 72 was not intended to alter, amend or supercede previously existing law concerning appeals. The amendment rephrases Rule 72 as a general statement that appeals are as provided by law, and is consistent with Rule 73 which states that the procedure on appeal is governed by the Rules of the Supreme Court.

Article V, § 5, of the Constitution sets forth the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Some of the relevant statutes are § 14-3-320 (equitable matters); § 14-3-330 (matters of law); § 17-17-140 (habeas corpus). Some of the important cases are: North Carolina Federal Savings and Loan Ass'n v. Twin States Dev. Corp., 289 S.C. 480, 347 S.E.2d 97 (1986) (§ 14-3-330 controls appeals not Rule 72); Coleman v. Keels, 30 S.C. 614, 9 S.E. 270 (1889) (certiorari); Ex parte Mackey, 15 S.C. 322 (1880) (mandamus); Southern Railway Co. v. Coltex, 285 S.C. 213, 329 S.E.2d 736 (1985) (new trial because of error of law); Simms v. Phillips, 46 S.C. 149, 24 S.E. 87 (1896) (subject matter jurisdiction); Nat. Exchange Bank v. Stelling, 32 S.C. 102, 10 S.E. 766 (1890) (personal jurisdiction); Godley v. Uniroyal, Inc., 278 S.C. 571, 300 S.E.2d 78 (1983) (venue not immediately appealable).

← Previous Rule 71.1: Post-conviction Relief Actions Next → Rule 73: Procedure on Appeal to Supreme Court or Court of Appeals

Cross-References

Referenced By (1)

SCRCP Rule 85

Bluebook Citation

SCRCP 72

This Rule Set

View All SCRCP Rules

Last updated: August 2026

Report an error