Judicial Administration

Court of Common Pleas Fiftieth Judicial District

In 2016 the Supreme Court promulgated and then adopted a new set of Rules of Judicial Administration that directly affect the ordering of official court transcripts by users of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. 

These rules, known commonly as Rule 4000 (PDF), direct (among other things) maximum amounts that may be charged to individuals who order transcripts, delineate specific time frames for the production of transcripts and direct Courts of Common Pleas across the Commonwealth to adopt a series of local rules detailing the process. Butler County's local rules may be found by going to the Butler County website, selecting the "Courts" and then selecting "Transcripts".

Request for Transcripts

The most significant changes that the system users will experience is the requirement that all requests for transcripts must be made by filling out the "Request for Transcript (PDF)" form and submitting it to the Court Administrator's office. Litigants and counsel will no longer deal directly with the Court Reporter when asking that transcripts be typed. And, after the Court Reporter has determined the approximate length of the transcript, a deposit of 90% of the estimated cost will be required before the court reporter begins to complete the transcript. 

Questions about this process may be directed to the Court Administrator's office.