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The court's workshop for parents going through divorce, separation and custody issues - preventing and managing conflict, communicating with the other parent, the effects of separation on children, children's developmental stages, home responsibilities, economic issues, discipline, removing children from parental conflict, the Court's role and parents retaining control of the mediation process, with role-play; court personnel schedule parents for particular workshop sessions; a Certificate of Completion filed in the court's file for parents who complete the workshop, accepted by the judicial officer hearing the case; childcare not provided - children not to be brought; the page repeats the Family Law page's custody mediation paragraphs (pre-filing mediation by calling 209-533-6565 with both parties, one party by telephone where domestic violence is alleged, mediation within 60 days under Family Code section 3170(a), the orientation in person on the first Wednesday of each month, 1pm – 4pm, in the Jury Assembly Room or online with the Certificate of Attendance filed before the session, a review hearing after it).
Chapter 7, Family Court Rules, Part 1 (General Rules): attorney fees and costs under Family Code section 271 or the sanctions of Local Rule 103 for failure to comply with the rules (700); matters set under Local Rule 301, dropped, continued or sanctioned for failure to be in the courtroom on time, and no matter calendared on the Family Law and Motion Calendar when both sides are represented by counsel without first calling opposing counsel to clear a hearing date (701); no more than ten (10) typewritten, double-spaced pages of declarations without prior approval under rule 5.111, fifty (50) pages of exhibits per declaration and five (5) pages for a reply or closing declaration (702(A)); medical, psychological, educational, mediation, probation and civil investigation reports and financial and real property records deemed business records without foundation unless a genuine objection is made, and legible, tumbled photocopies of Judicial Council forms (702(B) and 702(C)); no matter taken off calendar after service without notice to the responding party, who must agree where it has requested affirmative relief (703); continuances under Local Rule 304, an Order to Show Cause continued only by a Stipulation and Order or an Application and Order for Reissuance on form FL-306, and contempt orders to show cause and judgment debtor examinations not reissued and, after service, not continued without a court appearance (704); a matter that will take more than twenty (20) minutes may be continued to accommodate the calendar (705); a Case Management Conference set not more than one (1) year after the petition, a Case Management Conference Statement filed and served no less than seven (7) days before, and the parties or counsel present and prepared to address discovery, disclosure, experts, settlement and trial dates (706); ex parte and emergency requests under rules 3.1200 through 3.1207 on a declaration showing irreparable harm or immediate danger, assigned to a Court Commissioner unless a written objection is timely submitted (707); a Declaration Regarding Notice and Service of Request, the fee or a fee waiver and two (2) copies, notice by 10:00 a.m. on the preceding court date, applications and any opposition submitted by 10:00 a.m. on the noticed date, a response on mandatory form FL-320, decisions in most circumstances without a hearing, and the moving party serving the filed order (707(B)); temporary custody orders only on a declaration stating the date of separation, prior orders, the parent the child resides with and specific facts of danger, with an accompanying order restricting all parties from removing the child from California (707(C)); short notice orders for exclusive use of a vehicle only on a declaration, and for payment of obligations only with financial facts and an Income and Expense Declaration, copies conformed to modified orders, and set-aside requests under the same procedures (707(D) to 707(G)); Automatic Temporary Restraining Orders under Family Code section 2040, in dissolution, annulment and legal separation actions, against removing a minor child from the state, changing insurance or disposing of property, each party notifying the other of extraordinary expenditures at least five (5) days before, and in Uniform Parentage or Petition for Custody and Support matters against removing a child from the state (708); and the court clerk authorized to issue family law Orders to Show Cause without temporary orders or an Order Shortening Time and to set the hearing date (709)
The Family Law Division at the Ogletree Jr. Courthouse, 2260 N Street (calendar desk (209) 725-4155; filings 8:00 am - 3:00 pm); Child Custody Recommending Counseling (CCRC) by Family Court Services as this page states it - by telephone or video conference on a date set by the Court, the orientation video watched first, the Confidential Information for Child Custody Recommending Counseling form mailed to the Family Law Division at 627 W. 21st Street at least one (1) week before the appointment, a separate session on request, availability from 8:15 am – 12 pm for an appointment set at 8:45 am, a call one (1) business day before and a call between 8:15 AM and 9:00 AM on the day, an agreement signed by the Judge becoming a Court Order or a Recommendation and a Rationale mailed to the parents, and the rules for remote CCRC (no recording, a private place, no children or third parties, documents filed and served before the appointment), with the same instructions in Spanish; payment over the counter (cash, cashier’s check, money order, a Visa or MasterCard card with a processing and convenience fee) and by mail (money orders and cashier’s checks); and the Family Law FAQs - the mandatory Orientation (its attendance waivable for attendance within the last 18 months or a residence over 250 miles away, by the Formal Request for Waiver of Orientation Hearing submitted no later than 4:00 pm two days before the Orientation), a missed CCRC date (a reimbursement fee normally of $50.00), continuances by the Stipulation and Order to Continue or Advance a Court date filed before the date (no filing fee), notice of an ex parte hearing by a phone call with the proposed order given before the matter is called, the Divorce packet, alternative service, and who may view a confidential file (the parties or the attorney of record with picture I.D., or a person with a party's signed letter).
Chapter 5, Rules 5.5 to 5.8 (Mediation and Child Custody Recommending Counseling, Family Centered Case Management, Settlement Conferences, and Matters Set for Trial or Evidentiary Hearing): the services of Family Court Services (FCS) - confidential mediation (Tier I) made available in all cases in which child custody is at issue, without charge, at-court CCRC sessions to which children five years of age or older must be brought, a Tier II summary report without recommendations, Tier III CCRC sessions with a report and recommendation available two (2) court days before the court hearing, and Family Code § 3111 custody evaluations only when all other services have been insufficient (5.5.1 to 5.5.2); both parties to complete the online orientation before their Tier 1 - Confidential Mediation appointment, presented in the Family Court Services lobby on Fridays for any party without access to the Internet (5.5.3); a request for remote participation by Zoom at least three (3) calendar days before the FCS appointment, for a parent who resides beyond a 150-mile radius from the B.F. Sisk Fresno Superior Court building, a child who resides primarily outside the State of California, a court order or good cause, under the rules for Zoom participation, a request to reschedule sent to FresnoFCS@fresno.courts.ca.gov, and cancellation by both parties (5.5.4); the mediator who cannot testify about confidential Tier I mediation, the official information privilege belongs to the Court, and a CCRC counselor subpoenaed by personal service on FCS at least ten (10) calendar days before the hearing with a check of $275.00 as a deposit (5.5.5); no contact with the Mediator or CCRC counselor before or after the appointment, and a request for a new mediator only for a conflict of interest, no later than five (5) calendar days from the order (5.5.6); children five (5) and older brought to court only for an at-court recommending counselor session (5.5.7); one peremptory challenge to a Child Custody Evaluator, withdrawal and complaints through Family Court Services, faxed letters not accepted (5.5.10); an initial Status Conference hearing approximately one hundred and twenty (120) days from the date of filing the first paper, in the department of the Presiding Judge of the Family Law Division, follow-up Status Conferences, and Family Centered Case Resolution, a conference requested on form TFL-15, and attendance at the Status Conference mandatory (5.6 to 5.6.6); Settlement Conference Statements filed and served at least ten (10) calendar days before the conference, with an Income and Expense Declaration when support or attorney's fees are requested, and the minimum information for dissolution or legal separation, Uniform Parentage Actions and section 217 evidentiary hearings (5.7); and a family law case assigned to one judicial officer for all purposes to the extent possible, trials set in the department of origin unless the time estimate exceeds that available, all parties to regard the time estimate as certain, stipulated and disputed facts, a detailed list of each exhibit, a witness list and a trial brief filed and exchanged at least ten (10) calendar days before trial, and motions in limine in writing (5.8).
The court's local form SIE-0025 (Rev. 05/16/2018), Status and Case Resolution Conference Questionnaire, for Dissolution, Nullity, Parentage, Legal Separation and other family law cases: the issues on which the parties disagree or need orders, the discovery still to be done, the Declarations of Disclosure served (Dissolution, Legal Separation and Nullity cases only), settlement, agreements and a Mandatory Settlement Conference, a Case Resolution Conference requested for a complex matter, trial setting and the trial's estimate, and the Department of Child Support Services' involvement; and its instructions - the questionnaire completed by the party or the attorney, help for a self-represented party at the Family Law Facilitator's Office in the Sierra County Courthouse, the Clerk's office unable to provide legal advice; a copy served by mail and the original filed with the Court no later than 10 calendar days before the Status or Case Resolution Conference, the service by mail made by someone over the age of 18 who is not a party, who completes the Proof of Service by Mail (the party cannot serve the form); a self-represented party to appear in person or by CourtCall at the conference, with information from the Self-Help Center on the day of the conference; and a represented party's attorney able to appear in person or by CourtCall.
Packets at the Self-Help Legal Center and the Court Clerk's Service Windows; filed in the county where the person whose name is to be changed presently lives; hearings scheduled six (6) to seven (7) weeks from the date of filing, heard on Fridays at 9:00 a.m. in Dept. 2; the form to carry the Drivers License number, the Social Security number and any AKA names (adults), as a background check will be conducted by the courts, and the newspaper for publication; publication for 4 consecutive weeks, in Calaveras County in the Calaveras Enterprise or The Valley Springs News; after a California divorce that did not restore the name, an Ex Parte Application for Restoration of Former Name after Entry of Judgment and Order (FL-395) filed in the divorce case - no filing fee, certified copies $40.
A dissolution, legal separation or nullity case begun by the Petition and Summons, the other party served and the proof of service filed; the status conference date given at filing on the Status Conference Minute Order - a check on the case's progress, attended unless a judgment has been entered; judgment by agreement (a pre-registered clinic), by trial after the required financial disclosures when an answer is filed and the parties cannot agree, or by default after 30 days without a response; the Self-Help Center's clinics.
Section 14 (Rules 14.01 to 14.12): court designated child custody recommending counselors authorized to render a recommendation the court may consider without foundation, the assignment of counselors an administrative function of Family Court Services, and requests for a change made to its Director (14.01); declarations submitted to the counselor of no more than 10 pages each and 30 pages a parent, filed and served for actual physical receipt not later than noon of the court day preceding the mediation session (14.01); a written request to the Family Court Services office at Room 310 at least three court days before the hearing or trial for the counselor's testimony (14.01); child custody evaluations - the appointment on form FL-327, the court to order payment of the evaluator at the time of the appointment, evaluators qualified under Rules 5.225 and 5.230 who must file form FL-326, no peremptory challenges, withdrawal for good cause, complaints to the licensing board, the evaluator to file the report and serve it at least 10 days before the hearing, its confidentiality, and ex parte communications (14.02); the Family Law Facilitator under the supervision of the Presiding Judge, with the services of Family Code Section 10004 and the duties of Section 10005 (14.03); the family-centered case resolution process under CRC 5.83 for dissolution, legal separation, nullity, parentage and grandparent cases, the case review, and the milestones toward disposing of 90 percent of cases within 18 months - the proof of service, a request to enter default, the preliminary declaration of disclosure and the judgment after default, each within 60 days (14.05); an At-Issue Memorandum (Local Form LF-FAM-100) filed once a petition, response and preliminary disclosures have been filed, no trial date set on a party's request until it is filed, a Counter At-Issue Memorandum within ten (10) days, and the parties to complete all final disclosures following its filing (14.06); temporary spousal or partner support under the “Santa Clara Rule” - 40% of the net income of the payor, minus 50% of the net income of the payee - a computer generated support calculation attached to all orders after hearing or stipulations with support provisions, and requests for reimbursement with a summary and the evidence (14.07); service by delivery to the clerk of the court under Local Rule 5.21 (14.09); a party filing a FL-300, FL-320, DV-140, DV-120 or FL-305 which seeks orders regarding custody or visitation to file at the same time a Mandatory Disclosure of Information (Local Form LF-FAM-105) (14.10); no direct fax filings, filings through a fax filing agency, and no fax filing of the documents of CRC 2.300(b) except as provided in Family Code §§ 5700.316 and 5700.602 (14.11); supervised visitation providers - a professional provider's declaration on form FL-324(P) with a current Trust Line registration number, a business license within the County of Shasta, general liability insurance and 24-hour in-person training, submitted to the Family Court Services Director before the first visit and by the first week of January each year, Family Court Services' list of providers, visit reports to the court clerk's office and Family Court Services, and a nonprofessional provider's form FL-324(NP) filed before serving (14.12).
Rule 15 (15.1 to 15.6): the family-centered case resolution process under Family Code §§2450, 2451 and California Rules of Court, Rule 5.83, for dissolution, legal separation, nullity, petition for custody and support, parentage and grandparent cases filed after January 1, 2013 (15.1, 15.2); a Notice of Status Conference, the conference calendared within 180 days after the filing of the petition, served with the summons and petition (15.3); attendance - all parties at the initial status conference (the Department of Child Support Services excepted), attorneys and self-represented parties at each later one unless excused, and reconciliation (15.4); the Preliminary Declaration of Disclosure served no later than ninety (90) days after service of the petition, and form FL.060 filed and served at least five (5) calendar days before each status conference (15.5); and the status conference and the Court's role (15.6).
Part One, family law proceedings generally: the matters assigned to the Family Law Division (5.1); direct calendaring - the assignment of a matter to a judicial officer and notice of assignment and reassignment (5.2); the preparation and filing of forms and pleadings - use of the Solano County court case number, orders for publication of summons, the forms and documents included with moving papers, notices of unavailability (5.3); applications for emergency orders (ex parte orders) (5.4); law and motion hearings - setting an initial hearing, vacating a hearing, reissuance of a request for order, day of hearing procedures, telephonic appearances, informal discovery conferences (5.5); the presence of children in the courtroom, under Family Code section 3042 (5.6); status conferences and status conference reports (5.8); and court reporter fees, governed by Local Rule 18 (5.9). Part Two: settlement conferences - the duty to meet and confer, settlement conference statements, income and expense declarations and tax returns (5.10) - and evidentiary hearings and trials (5.11). Part Three, child custody and visitation: child custody recommending counseling (5.20), child custody and visitation evaluations (5.21), minor's counsel (5.22) and the court communication protocol under rule 5.445 (5.23). Part Four: the Santa Clara guideline for temporary spousal or partner support (5.30). Part Five, judgments: calendaring hearings for default or uncontested judgments (5.40) and the documents needed for judgments of legal separation or dissolution (5.41), of nullity (5.42) and establishing a parental relationship or custody and support (5.43), with the appendices 5-A and 5-B. Rule 5.7 is repealed.
Title Five, Division 1, Chapter 1 (Rules 5.0 to 5.21): application of rules and definitions (Rule 5.0); assignment of departments and matters (Rule 5.1); temporary restraining orders and ex parte orders (Rule 5.2); orders shortening time (Rule 5.3); hearings (Rule 5.4); procedures to complete dissolution or legal separation (Rule 5.5); the case management conference / Family Centered Case Resolution Conference (Rule 5.6); the mandatory settlement conference (Rule 5.7); the recommendation conference (Rule 5.8); trials (Rule 5.9); preparation and presentation of orders (Rule 5.10); judgments (Rule 5.11); appointment of elisor (Rule 5.12); confidentiality (Rule 5.13); the Family Law Facilitator (Rule 5.14); temporary spousal or partner support (Rule 5.15); presence of children in the courtroom (Rule 5.16); Family Court Services appointments - orientation, mediation, information gathering and child custody recommending counseling (Rule 5.17); child custody evaluations (Rule 5.18); court communication for domestic violence and child custody orders (Rule 5.19); dismissal for failure to prosecute (Rule 5.20); and the requirement for a current mailing address (Rule 5.21).