Rule 83 Local rules

Circuit courts in West Virginia can create their own local rules to handle how cases are managed in that specific court. These local rules fill in details that aren't already covered by the statewide rules of civil procedure or the West Virginia Trial Court Rules. However, a local rule can't conflict with those broader rules. If it does, the broader rule wins.

Before a circuit court's local rule can actually be used, it has to be sent to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals for approval. The rule doesn't take effect until the Supreme Court signs off on it. The Supreme Court may also choose to publish the approved rule in the West Virginia Reports, and the rule must be recorded in whatever way the Supreme Court requires.

For someone involved in a lawsuit, this means the specific court handling your case might have extra local rules beyond the standard statewide rules. These could cover things like filing deadlines, formatting requirements, or scheduling procedures unique to that courthouse. It's worth checking whether the circuit court you're dealing with has published local rules, since following them matters just as much as following the general rules of civil procedure.