How do I obtain a transcript?

Anyone who is a party or an attorney interested in obtaining a transcript from a court proceeding in Circuit or Family Court must order the transcript in writing by contacting the court reporter assigned to record the proceedings. If the requestor is a non-party, the court reporter must get a court order to provide the transcript. You may request a transcript by completing this form and emailing it to South Carolina Court Administration at transcripts@sccourts.org and to the Court Reporter. If you are requesting a transcript from court proceedings in Municipal, Magistrate, Master-In-Equity, or Probate court, you must contact that court directly.

The following instructions explain how you can find the Court Reporter’s email address and mailing address.

1. Hover over the calendar drop down menu on the far right of the top menu.
2. Click “Terms of Court” in the drop down menu.
3. Select the circuit/ county where the term was held.
4. At the top of the following page, you can select the month and year when the court was held.
5. Once the correct month and year is selected, click the “Go To Date” button.
6. After the page loads, you will see the terms separated into weeks for the month. Circuit court will be in the top section and Family court will be in the bottom section.
7. Find the day and the Judge who presided. You will see the court reporter’s last name below the Judge’s name. Click on the court reporter’s last name to open their information page.
8. Once the page has loaded, you will find the court reporter’s full name, email address, and mailing address. 

Once your request is received, court reporters should acknowledge your request in writing within five business days, advising you of the cost to obtain the transcript. Court reporters do not accept personal checks. You will be instructed to send a money order or certified bank check in order to obtain the transcript.

Pursuant to South Carolina Appellate Court Rule 607, court reporters have 60 days to prepare and deliver the transcript after satisfactory payment arrangements are made. If the court reporter is unable to complete the transcript in 60 days, he or she may request a 30-day extension. If this extension is granted, you will be notified by Court Administration. Court reporters may ask for up to three extensions from Court Administration. If court reporters are unable, due to heavy transcript loads, time in court, or other extenuating circumstances, to produce the transcript within that additional 90-day time frame, they may request an additional extension from the Chief Justice. If granted, you will be notified by Court Administration.

If after following this procedure, your request is not acknowledged, or the transcript has not been received, you may contact Court Administration, and we will be glad to assist you. If you are requesting a transcript from digital court proceedings, contact Tammie Holmes, Court Reporter Manager, via email: tholmes@sccourts.org, or at South Carolina Court Administration, 1220 Senate Street, Suite 200, Columbia, SC 29201.