Rule 365.Appeal to Wrong Court

Article III. Civil Appeals Rules · Part F. Other Provisions · Last amended 2017 · Last verified July 20, 2026

In one sentenceRule 365 fixes a misdirected appeal by transferring it to the correct reviewing court instead of dismissing it.

Full Text of Ill. S. Ct. R. 365

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If a case is appealed to either the Supreme Court or the Appellate Court, or the wrong district of the Appellate Court, which should have been appealed to a different court, the case shall be transferred to the proper court, and the clerk shall transmit the record on appeal and all other documents filed in the case, with the order of transfer, to the clerk of the proper court. That clerk shall file the record and other documents upon receiving them, without charging an additional filing fee, and the case shall then proceed as if it had been appealed to the proper court in the first instance. Any bond executed in such a transferred case is binding on the parties thereto with the same force and effect as if given in a case appealed directly to the court to which the case is transferred.

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Plain-English Summary

Filing an appeal in the wrong court — or the wrong district of the Appellate Court — isn't fatal under Illinois practice. Rule 365 has the clerk transmit the record and every other filed document, along with a transfer order, straight to the clerk of the court that should have gotten the case in the first place.

The receiving clerk files everything without charging a new filing fee, and the case moves forward exactly as if it had landed in the right court from day one. Any bond posted before the transfer keeps its full force and effect in the new court.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if an appeal is filed in the wrong court?

It gets transferred to the proper court, rather than dismissed, and the clerk sends the record and all filed documents along with a transfer order.

Does the appellant have to pay a new filing fee at the correct court?

No. The receiving clerk files the record and documents without charging an additional fee.

Does the case restart once it's transferred?

No. It proceeds as if it had been appealed to the correct court from the start.

What happens to a bond posted before the transfer?

It stays binding on the parties with the same force and effect as if it had been given in the court the case is transferred to.

Does this rule also cover filing in the wrong Appellate Court district?

Yes, transfers between districts of the Appellate Court are covered along with transfers between the Appellate and Supreme Courts.

Committee Comments and Commentary

Paragraph (a) is former Rule 28-1(D), which belongs here rather than in the rule relating to direct appeals to the Supreme Court. Paragraph (b) is section 86 of the Civil Practice Act, which covers the same ground as former Rule 47.

(December 17, 1993)

Paragraph (a) concerning collateral attack and waiver is deleted because it is an outdated vestige of practice under Illinois’ former Constitution.

This rule is expanded to permit limited, intra-district transfers when appeals are docketed in the wrong appellate court district.

Amendment History

Amended December 17, 1993, effective February 1, 1994; amended June 22, 2017, eff. July 1, 2017.

Source & verification. Rule text, official Committee Comments, and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Illinois Supreme Court Rules, promulgated by the Supreme Court of Illinois. Last verified July 20, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: appeal filed wrong courttransfer appeal to correct courtwrong appellate districtmisdirected appeal Illinois