Opinion ID: 2516769
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Record Designation

Text: [¶ 9] In footnote two of its brief, the board objected to this court considering transcripts not previously designated by the Conners to be included in the record on appeal. The board specifically objected to consideration of the June 18, 1999, condemnation bench trial transcript. W.R.A.P. 3.05 requires parties, simultaneously with the filing of their appellate briefs, to designate those portions of the district court record upon which they have relied. This court's docket reflects the Conners' brief was filed on January 29, 2002, without a designation of record. The Conners had a second opportunity to file a designation of record with a reply brief, but they did not do so. [¶ 10] On April 3, 2002, the Conners filed a designation request with the district court asking that all available transcripts in the file be transmitted to the Supreme Court. On the same day, the board filed an objection in the district court to the transcript of the June 18, 1999, proceedings being included because the Conners did not designate it as a portion of the record on appeal. The caption of the board's pleading read IN THE SUPREME COURT[,] STATE OF WYOMING and recited both the district court and the Supreme Court docket numbers. It appears the district court clerk subsequently transmitted all available transcripts to this court, including the transcript for the June 18, 1999, condemnation trial. The board filed no motion in this court to strike the transcript. [¶ 11] W.R.A.P. 3.04 requires all questions as to the form and content of the record, except differences which may arise as to whether the record discloses what occurred in the trial court, to be presented to the appellate court by motion. The board did not follow this procedure because it filed its motion objecting to the transcript with only the district court. Though the caption referred to the Supreme Court, the motion was never filed with the clerk of this court. Failure to comply with our rules of appellate procedure is ground for such action as the appellate court deems appropriate, including but not limited to: refusal to consider the offending party's contentions; assessment of costs; dismissal; and affirmance. W.R.A.P. 1.03. We ... expect litigants who choose to proceed pro se to comply with the Wyoming appellate rules just as we expect trained lawyers to comply with those rules. Basolo v. Gose, 994 P.2d 968, 969 (Wyo.2000). [¶ 12] Both parties failed to fully comply with our rules of appellate procedure with regard to including the transcript in the appellate record. It would be unreasonable to grant the board's objection and disregard the transcript when the board itself failed to properly raise the issue. Therefore, we deem it appropriate to disregard the mutual errors and consider the certified record as submitted.