The Judicial Council may promulgate rules governing pretrial conferences, and the time, manner and nature thereof, in civil cases at issue, or in one or more classes thereof, in the superior courts.
Of Civil ActionsPretrial Conferences
Section § 575
This law allows the Judicial Council to create rules about how pretrial conferences should be conducted in civil cases in superior courts, including when they should happen and what they should cover.
Judicial Council pretrial conferences civil cases
Section § 575.1
This law allows the head judge of each superior court to create local rules to help manage court cases more efficiently. These rules can apply to any part of the court's process, not just active cases. Once the rules are drafted, they must be approved by a majority of the judges, published, and shared with local legal professionals for feedback. After being officially adopted, the rules must be filed with the Judicial Council and made publicly available in each county, with the court ensuring they are accessible for inspection and copying. If a rule is specific to a single judge or court branch, it should still be included in the court's general rules publication. This ensures transparency and consistency across the court's procedures.
(a)CA Civil Procedure Code § 575.1(a) The presiding judge of each superior court may prepare, with the assistance of appropriate committees of the court, proposed local rules designed to expedite and facilitate the business of the court. The rules need not be limited to those actions on the civil active list, but may provide for the supervision and judicial management of actions from the date they are filed. Rules prepared pursuant to this section shall be submitted for consideration to the judges of the court and, upon approval by a majority of the judges, the judges shall
have the proposed rules published and submitted to the local bar and others, as specified by the Judicial Council, for consideration and recommendations.
(b)CA Civil Procedure Code § 575.1(b) After a majority of the judges have officially adopted the rules, they shall be filed with the Judicial Council as required by Section 68071 of the Government Code and as specified in rules adopted by the Judicial Council. The Judicial Council shall prescribe rules to ensure that a complete current set of local rules and amendments, for each county in the state, is made available for public examination in each county. The local rules shall also be published for general distribution in accordance with rules adopted by the Judicial Council. Each court shall make its local rules available for inspection and copying in every location of the court that generally accepts filing of papers. The court may impose a reasonable charge for copying the rules and may impose a reasonable page limit on
copying. The rules shall be accompanied by a notice indicating where a full set of the rules may be purchased.
(c)CA Civil Procedure Code § 575.1(c) If a judge of a court adopts a rule that applies solely to cases in that judge’s courtroom, or a particular branch or district of a court adopts a rule that applies solely to cases in that particular branch or district of a court, the court shall publish these rules as part of the general publication of rules required by the California Rules of Court. The court shall organize the rules so that rules on a common subject, whether individual, branch, district, or courtwide appear sequentially. Individual judges’ rules and branch and district rules are local rules of court for purposes of this section and for purposes of the adoption, publication, comment, and filing requirements set forth in the Judicial Council rules applicable to local court rules.
presiding judge superior court local rules
Section § 575.2
This section explains that if someone, whether a lawyer or self-represented person, doesn't follow local rules set under a specific section, the court might take actions like dismissing parts of or the entire case, or making the person responsible pay expenses, including the other party's legal fees. Before any penalty is imposed, the party will be given notice and a chance to explain themselves. If the failure to comply is the lawyer's fault, the lawyer will be penalized, not the client.
(a)CA Civil Procedure Code § 575.2(a) Local rules promulgated pursuant to Section 575.1 may provide that if any counsel, a party represented by counsel, or a party if in pro se, fails to comply with any of the requirements thereof, the court on motion of a party or on its own motion may strike out all or any part of any pleading of that party, or, dismiss the action or proceeding or any part thereof, or enter a judgment by default against that party, or impose other penalties of a lesser nature as otherwise provided by law, and may order that party or his or her counsel to
pay to the moving party the reasonable expenses in making the motion, including reasonable attorney fees. No penalty may be imposed under this section without prior notice to, and an opportunity to be heard by, the party against whom the penalty is sought to be imposed.
(b)CA Civil Procedure Code § 575.2(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that if a failure to comply with these rules is the responsibility of counsel and not of the party, any penalty shall be imposed on counsel and shall not adversely affect the party’s cause of action or defense thereto.
local rules compliance default judgment penalties legal expenses reimbursement
Section § 576
This law says that a judge can approve changes to legal documents or pretrial orders at any point before or during a trial if they believe it will serve justice and the terms are appropriate.
Any judge, at any time before or after commencement of trial, in the furtherance of justice, and upon such terms as may be proper, may allow the amendment of any pleading or pretrial conference order.
judge trial justice
