Loading…
Orange County, CA
Every published instrument scoped to Orange County, newest effective date first. 0 circuit-wide and 13 statewide instruments also apply here — search all three layers together. Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Showing 1–50 of 139 · page 1 of 3
Judge Carmen R. Luege's policies for Department C16 (Central Justice Center): continuances (no telephone continuances; one law-and-motion continuance by written stipulation; trial continuances under Code of Civil Procedure section 595.2); remote and in-person proceedings under Local Rule 375 (settlement conferences remote at 8:30 a.m., evidentiary proceedings in person) and media and public access; calendar (trials Monday through Wednesday; settlement conferences Thursday 8:30 a.m.; Friday 8:30 a.m. conferences and prove-ups and 10:00 a.m. law and motion; ex parte applications Monday, Wednesday and Friday 1:30 p.m.); ex parte procedures (reservation and notice by 10:00 a.m. the court day before; papers by noon; oppositions by 4:00 p.m.); law and motion and tentative rulings; and trial procedures.
Judge Yolanda V. Torres's general policies and procedures for Department C15 (Central Justice Center): remote versus in-person proceedings; calendar (order to show cause hearings, case management conferences, post-arbitration and review hearings Monday 8:45 a.m.; settlement conferences Friday 9:00 a.m.; default prove-ups Friday 10:00 a.m.; law and motion Monday 1:45 p.m.; trials Tuesday through Thursday; ex parte applications Tuesday through Thursday 8:30 a.m. on reservation by 10:00 a.m. the day before); general procedures; ex parte applications; law and motion; and trial procedures (issue conference and statement of compliance, motions in limine, jury selection, exhibits and demonstratives, depositions, witnesses, stipulations, jury instructions), with the department's conduct-in-trials rules and trial forms.
Judge Kimberly A. Knill's policies for Department C31 (Central Justice Center): schedule (trials Monday through Wednesday; settlement conferences Friday 9:00 a.m.; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m.; motions Friday 10:00 a.m.; case management conferences Thursday 1:30 p.m.; trial call Friday 11:30 a.m.); motions and tentative rulings; discovery motions (meet and confer first); ex parte applications (notice by 10:00 a.m. and filing by noon the court day before); stipulations; the Department C31 Pretrial Order (a pretrial checklist tied to Local Rule 317); and the department's Standing Order re: Artificial Intelligence of August 10, 2026: counsel and self-represented parties must personally confirm the accuracy of research done with generative AI, bear responsibility for all statements in their filings, and may be sanctioned or referred for failing to verify citations.
In the Appellate Division, counsel and self-represented parties are responsible for complete and accurate representations of the record, procedural history and authorities; generative AI is not prohibited, but its user must personally confirm the accuracy of research done with it and bears responsibility for every statement in a filing; users must comply with protective orders and ethical obligations; failure to verify citations may bring sanctions or State Bar discipline.
Judge Lindsey E. Martínez's policies for Department C24 (Central Justice Center), which encourages remote appearances: schedule (trials Tuesday through Thursday; settlement conferences Friday 9:00 a.m.; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m.; motions Monday 1:30 p.m.; case management and order to show cause hearings Monday 8:45 a.m.; trial call Monday 9:30 a.m.); case management statements; motions and tentative rulings; ex parte reservations by 10:00 a.m. the court day before; stipulations; and the Department C24 Pretrial Order (exhibits for bench trials through the Electronic Evidence Portal; a pretrial checklist tied to Local Rule 317; exhibit notebooks, motions in limine, jury selection and instructions, special verdict forms and courtroom expectations), ordered August 5, 2026.
Judge Thomas J. Lo's general policies and procedures for Department C44 (Central Justice Center): calendar (order to show cause, case management, post-arbitration, review and default prove-up hearings Friday 8:30 a.m.; settlement conferences Friday 9:00 a.m.; law and motion Thursday 8:30 a.m.; trials Monday through Wednesday 8:30 a.m.; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on reservation by 10:00 a.m. the day before), the Local Rule 315 meet and confer, case management and settlement conferences, continuances; ex parte applications (papers by noon the business day before; content under rules 3.1200–3.1207); law and motion; and trial procedures, with the department's conduct-in-trials rules and trial forms.
Judge R. Shawn Nelson's general policies and procedures for Department C10 (Central Justice Center): calendar (order to show cause hearings, case management conferences and review hearings Thursday 9:00 a.m.; settlement conferences Friday 8:30 a.m.; default prove-ups Thursday 10:00 a.m.; law and motion Thursday 1:30 p.m. by online reservation; trials Monday through Wednesday; ex parte applications Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on reservation by noon the day before); general procedures (the civil rules, civility, court reporters, the Local Rule 315 meet and confer, case management and settlement conferences, continuances); ex parte applications; law and motion; and trial procedures, with the department's conduct-in-trials rules and trial forms.
The protocol for the Civil Unlimited courtrooms piloting the Electronic Evidence Portal for court and jury trials (Departments C15, C16, C24, C25 and C27; the trial judge may excuse its use for good cause): exhibit number ranges agreed at the Local Rule 317 issue conference; exhibits uploaded and shared through the portal's Virtual Viewing Room no later than 14 days before trial (impeachment exhibits may be uploaded as confidential); the final set by noon the Wednesday before trial; counsel display exhibits on court laptops; and each department's Electronic Evidence Order and Stipulation.
Judge Ebrahim Baytieh's revised pretrial orders for Department CM05 (Costa Mesa Justice Complex): expectations of counsel and self-represented parties (civility, with authorities); pretrial documents and deliveries to the clerk (a joint witness list with time estimates and the other joint lists); motions in limine; in-person trials; witnesses; objections; interruptions and discussions during trial; exhibits; transcripts; trial schedule and time estimates; consequences of noncompliance.
Judge Megan Wagner's pretrial orders for Department CM06 (Costa Mesa Justice Complex): expectations of counsel and self-represented parties; the trial schedule (Monday and Wednesday all day, Thursday and Friday mornings) and time estimates; motions in limine and oppositions; in-person trials; exhibits through the Electronic Evidence Portal; witnesses; objections; interruptions during trial; transcripts of recordings offered in evidence; deposition transcripts; consequences of noncompliance.
Commissioner Sharon M. Anderson's pretrial orders for Department CM08 (Costa Mesa Justice Complex): expectations of counsel and self-represented parties (the Orange County Bar Association Civility Guidelines); pretrial documents under Local Rule 317 and joint exhibit, witness, stipulated-fact and controverted-issue lists delivered to the clerk; motions in limine; in-person trials; witnesses; objections; interruptions and discussions during trial; exhibits; transcripts; deposition transcripts; trial schedule and time estimates; consequences of noncompliance.
Every Miscellaneous Juvenile Court Policy Order executed before May 20, 2026 is rescinded; notwithstanding Local Rule 900.1.3, this order does not expire absent further order.
The Orange County Health Care Agency is authorized to perform non-invasive, non-investigatory medical and nursing assessments of minors taken into temporary custody by the Social Services Agency or the Probation Department, to determine emergency medical needs including contagious diseases (a comprehensive health assessment, laboratory tests, prophylactic immunizations, mental health and dental assessments) and to provide emergency medical, mental health and dental treatment those assessments show to be necessary.
Under Welfare and Institutions Code section 318.5, the court requests County Counsel to appear and participate in dependency proceedings on behalf of the Social Services Agency, without compelling representation where County Counsel declares a conflict or cannot act; the order does not expire absent further order.
For the Orange County Public Defender's Office, the Law Offices of Harold LaFlamme, Juvenile Defenders and the Law Office of Linh Redhead: to identify conflicts of interest at the earliest opportunity, including before initial detention hearings, their attorneys may access the Social Services Agency reports on the juvenile division's SharePoint site; once appointed without a conflict, counsel may retrieve the case documents there; the reports are confidential (Welfare and Institutions Code section 827; Local Rule 903.1) and may not be disclosed, except the existence of a conflict, without further order.
The order governing the Orange County CASA program, superseding all prior CASA orders: CASA personnel and appointed advocates may inspect juvenile case files (section 827(a)(1)(Q)) with copies kept in the clerk's office; CASA family connections work for dependents in foster care; Probation must give CASA access to information on and visitation with youth for whom CASA is appointed; limits on disclosing a child's dependent, ward or foster care status; and notice to CASA.
On request of an attorney of the Orange County Public Defender's Office, the Probation Department must release the names and locations of the minors specified, and Public Defender attorneys must be admitted to Juvenile Hall and the other Probation institutions to meet with and interview those minors in an unmonitored booth without further order; the order does not expire absent further order.
Judge Richard Y. Lee's policies for Department W15 (West Justice Center): remote video hearings for law-and-motion and non-law-and-motion matters when appropriate; non-law-and-motion hearings Thursday 1:30 p.m.; law and motion Thursday 1:30 p.m. by online reservation; jury and court trials Monday through Wednesday 9:00 a.m. under the separate standing order on trials; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on telephonic reservation by noon the court day before; electronic signatures by all parties.
The court's procedural guidelines for mental health diversion: the statutory criteria of Penal Code section 1001.36; motions with a proposed treatment plan, filed electronically by email to MentalHealthDiversion@occourts.org; eligibility hearings; companion cases; placement in treatment and monitoring, with progress review hearings Thursdays 8:30 a.m. in Department CCB1 and progress reports filed by the Monday before; unsatisfactory performance; and dismissal on satisfactory completion.
The court's procedural guidelines for military diversion under Penal Code section 1001.80 (felonies eligible since January 1, 2025, with the listed exclusions): motions filed by email to mdmotions@occourts.org; hearings on the second through fifth Tuesdays, presumed non-evidentiary; oppositions five and replies two court days before the hearing; companion cases; placement in the program and monitoring of performance; and, on successful completion, dismissal of the charges with the arrest deemed never to have occurred (subject to the peace-officer application exception), with local program contacts.
Judge Bradley Erdosi's pretrial order for all cases assigned to him (Department C27): the department's policies apply; expectations of counsel and self-represented parties (the Orange County Bar Association Civility Guidelines); pretrial documents filed at least five court days before trial and a joint trial notebook delivered three court days before trial; motions in limine exchanged by the Local Rule 317 issue conference; in-person trials; witnesses and interpreters; objections without speaking; and exhibits uploaded to the Electronic Evidence Portal within three days of the Rule 317 conference.
Judge Erin Rowe's trial expectations and pretrial orders for Department CM03 (Costa Mesa Justice Complex): expectations of counsel and self-represented parties (the Orange County Bar Association Civility Guidelines); pretrial documents filed five court days before trial under Local Rule 317, and joint exhibit, witness, stipulated-fact and controverted-issue lists delivered by the Monday before trial; motions in limine; in-person trials; witnesses; objections; exhibits; transcripts; deposition transcripts; trial schedule and time estimates; consequences of noncompliance.
Judge Andre De La Cruz's policies for Department CM02 (Costa Mesa Justice Complex), the civil discovery department: law and motion (discovery matters) Thursday 9:00 a.m. by online reservation; informal discovery conferences Monday through Wednesday 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on one joint letter brief; courtesy copies not needed; jury and court trials and ex parte applications remain before the inventory judge.
Judge Julianne Sartain Bancroft's policies for Department N14 (North Justice Center): courtesy copies not needed; non-law-and-motion hearings Monday 1:30 p.m.; settlement conferences and judgment debtor examinations Friday 9:00 a.m.; law and motion Monday 9:00 a.m. by online reservation; jury and court trials Tuesday through Thursday 8:30 a.m. under the separate trial standing order; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on telephonic reservation by noon the day before; electronic signatures.
The trial standing order issued in every case assigned to Judge Julianne S. Bancroft and set for trial (Department N14): civility and professionalism; continuances (disfavored; stipulations not effective until ordered); exhibits; objections; the Local Rule 317 issue conference; in limine motions; jury instructions and special verdict forms; the jury selection method and limits on attorney voir dire; witnesses and scheduling; and other issues (post-trial matters, jury fees and court reporters, multiple counsel, communication with the court, notice of the order), with the statement of compliance, procedural stipulations, joint witness and exhibit lists and exhibit tags attached.
The Probate Division's ex parte procedures (revised February 20, 2026): every ex parte application is a non-appearance matter decided on the papers, and the outcome is sent to the parties; the applicant must make an affirmative factual showing of irreparable harm under California Rules of Court, rules 3.1200 et seq., 7.55 and 7.454; filing, notice and service requirements (pleading paper, the “Probate – XP” department, the Declaration Re Ex Parte Application form L-3033 under Local Rule 601.13, e-filing and service by 10:00 a.m., consent before notice by email alone); and the applications that may be brought ex parte.
Judge Theodore R. Howard's general information for Department C20 (Central Justice Center): trials Monday through Wednesday 9:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. (deliberations may continue Thursday and Friday); law and motion Thursday 1:30 p.m. with tentative rulings posted Wednesday; one remote mandatory settlement conference each Friday 8:30 a.m. before a temporary judge; case management, order to show cause, post-arbitration review, status conferences and default prove-ups on Fridays; ex parte applications Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. on reservation before noon the day before.
Mandatory electronic filing in family law under Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6, California Rules of Court, rule 2.253(b)(2), and Local Rule 700.7: attorneys must e-file every document not on the exceptions list; self-represented parties are exempt but encouraged to e-file; parties with fee waivers are exempt from e-filing fees; the originals that may not be e-filed as of December 15, 2025 (adoption memos to set, applications for publication or posting, bonds, judgments, out-of-state registrations, special immigrant juvenile findings with an FL-935 guardian ad litem application, subpoenaed documents, surrogacy filings, trial exhibits not ordered through the portal, writs and abstracts); eFile CA; and self-help Guide and File.
Judge Thomas S. McConville's general policies and procedures for Department C28 (Central Justice Center): remote appearances and public access (remote for nonevidentiary hearings, including law and motion); calendar (order to show cause, case management and review hearings Monday 9:00 a.m.; settlement conferences Friday 8:30 a.m.; debtor examinations Friday 9:00 a.m.; default prove-ups and small claims appeals Friday 9:30 a.m.; law and motion Monday 2:00 p.m.; trials Tuesday through Thursday; ex parte Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on reservation by noon the day before); general procedures (stipulations submitted as one Word document); ex parte applications; law and motion; and trial procedures, with the department's conduct-in-trials rules and trial forms.
Judge Gassia Apkarian's policies and procedures for Department C25 (Central Justice Center): ex parte matters Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m. on telephone reservation; law and motion Tuesday 10:00 a.m.; mandatory settlement conferences Thursday and Friday 8:30 a.m. before a temporary judge; trial call Monday 9:30 a.m. with trial days Monday, Wednesday and Thursday; case management, order to show cause and post-arbitration hearings Tuesday 9:30 a.m.; default prove-ups Tuesday 11:00 a.m.; issues conferences under Local Rule 317 (permitted by phone and fax); and trial procedures (electronic evidence portal, filing of trial documents, in limine motions, six-pack jury selection of 14 jurors, jury instructions and verdict forms), with the department's conduct-in-jury-trials rules.
Department C13's policies (Central Justice Center): no courtesy copies and no physical copies for the department; trial readiness and non-law-and-motion hearings; settlement conferences the court conducts on the parties' stipulation; law and motion Friday 9:30 a.m. with papers filed within 24 hours of the online reservation (not for summary judgment motions); jury and court trials (exhibits brought on the first day of trial); ex parte applications Monday through Thursday 1:30 p.m., usually ruled on in chambers by noon, on telephonic reservation by noon the day before, with oppositions by 8:30 a.m.
All name change matters are set for remote hearing (parties who prefer may appear in person at window 20 in the Civil Department at the Central Justice Center); remote appearance by Zoom through the links on the court's Civil Appearance Procedure and Information page; interpreter requests on form INT-300; Local Rule 375.
Judge Melissa R. McCormick's guidelines for approval of class action and PAGA settlements (Department CX105): motions for preliminary approval of class action settlements (the noticed motion under rule 3.769(c) and its supporting information; class notice administration; class notice; proposed orders); motions for final approval; and motions for approval of PAGA settlements.
Judge Jonathan Fish's policies for Department C11 (Central Justice Center): non-law-and-motion hearings Monday 9:00 a.m.; default prove-ups and settlement conferences Friday 9:00 a.m.; law and motion Monday 1:30 p.m. by online reservation (one attorney per party argues unless permitted otherwise); jury and court trials Tuesday through Thursday 9:00 a.m. under the separate trial standing order; ex parte applications Tuesday through Friday 1:30 p.m. on telephonic reservation; electronic signatures; and remote appearance requirements.
Effective July 1, 2025, the court electronically serves counsel for all represented parties in family law cases (Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6; California Rules of Court, rule 2.251; Local Rule 700.7): attorneys must accept electronic service and provide an email address (form MC-040); self-represented litigants may opt in (EFS-005-CV); the court's eService list, updating addresses, when service is complete, and secure notices from no-reply@occourts.org.
Division 1 of the court's local rules (Court Organization and Governance; issued 01/01/21; rules 100–190): citation and effect of the rules and the adoption of rules, policies, procedures and forms; the Presiding Judge and Assistant Presiding Judge (nomination and election, candidacy, the acting presiding judge, special elections) and temporary judges; the Executive Committee (term, composition, elections, meetings, approval by a majority of judges); media and public photographing, recording and broadcasting in court (Rule 180); and the availability of court reporter services (Rule 190).
Division 2 (Superior Court Personnel; issued 07/01/19; rules 200–256): the Executive Officer/Clerk of the Court, professional dues, and complaints and procedures concerning superior court commissioners, referees and temporary judges (Rule 244); the division's other rules are vacated or repealed, as the division records.
Division 3 (Civil Rules; issued 7/1/25; rules 300–393 and Appendix A): civil cases over $35,000 (classification, all-purpose assignment, improper re-filing, special masters, collection cases, the Rule 315 meet and confer statement, mandatory settlement conferences, the Rule 317 pre-trial requirements, uninsured motorist, construction defect and toxic pollution cases, installment judgments); civil cases of $35,000 and under; small claims; and rules for all civil cases, among them electronic filing (Rule 352), delay reduction, alternative dispute resolution (Rule 360), filing locations, case management, compromise of claims, telephonic appearances, remote and in-person proceedings (Rule 375), sanctions, tentative rulings (Rule 382), default judgments, judgment debtor examinations and Labor Commissioner appeals. Appendix A lists the documents Rules 315–317 require.
Division 5 (Appellate Rules; issued 05/06/20; rules 500–510): briefs filed in the Appellate Division, the number of copies and electronic recording; and the Clerk's consent to electronic service of civil appellate briefs filed in the Court of Appeal, at EServiceDCAbriefs@occourts.org (Rule 510).
Division 6 (Probate; issued 07/01/25 and 07/01/24; rules 600–613.09): general information (filing procedures, remote and in-person proceedings, lodging voluminous materials, approved matters and probate notes, continuances, consolidation, ex parte matters involving elder or dependent adult abuse, petitions for ex parte orders, probate and nunc pro tunc orders, bonds, letters, motions to be relieved as counsel, law and motion, guardians ad litem, master calendar trial dates); notice requirements; appointment of personal representatives; probate referees, inventories and appraisals; creditor's claims; sales; miscellaneous petitions; accounts, compensation and distributions; joint tenancies and life estates; guardianships; conservatorships; and blocked accounts.
Division 7 (Family Law; issued 01/01/25 and 7/1/25; rules 700–721): the family law court's subject matter, attorneys and self-represented parties, electronic filing (Rule 700.7), assignment of cases and the family centered case resolution process, related cases, privately compensated temporary judges, financial issues, child custody mediation, investigations and evaluations, supervised visitation providers, ex parte matters, requests for order, mandatory and voluntary settlement conferences, uncontested trials and default prove-ups, contested trials, hearings and judgment procedures, summary dissolution, minor's counsel, qualified domestic relations orders, electronic evidence for trials and specially set hearings (Rule 714), petitions for freedom from parental custody and control, remote and in-person proceedings (Rule 719), parentage filings under a gestational surrogacy agreement, and the appointment of an elisor.
Division 8 (Criminal; issued 01/01/20; rules 800–866): felony cases (pretrial motions, motions in capital cases, subpoenas duces tecum) and misdemeanor cases (law and motion, acceptance of pleas, pretrial conferences, informal arraignments (Rule 856), traffic trials by declaration, transfers under Code of Civil Procedure section 170, motions to suppress evidence, and requests for returned documents by mail).
Division 9 (Juvenile Court; issued 06/09/23; rules 900–908): jurisdiction, assignment and distribution of cases, including the juvenile court's rules of practice and its adoption of administrative and miscellaneous orders (Rules 900.1–900.1.3); specialty collaborative courts; Evidence Code section 730 evaluations; confidential information; Court Appointed Special Advocates; attorneys representing parties in juvenile court; media and photographing, recording and broadcasting in court; mandatory settlement conferences in dependency proceedings; and electronic filing in juvenile cases.
The preface to the local rules: the Orange County Bar Association adopted Civility Guidelines in 2016, and the court expects all attorneys who appear before it to abide by them. The guidelines the preface links follow (approved December 21, 2016): a preamble and three guidelines — civility to other counsel and self-represented litigants, civility during discovery, and civility to the courts.
Small claims: filing, questions and self-help; in Department C16 every small claims trial is first set for a remote evidentiary hearing to assess notice, opposition and trial readiness, with Zoom links on the court's Civil Appearance Procedure page and appearance by video encouraged; technology problems; Local Rule 375; small claims appeals are heard in person as noticed.
The Presiding Judge's designation of where cases are heard and tried: limited and unlimited civil, small claims, unlawful detainer and civil harassment at the Central Justice Center; complex civil at the Civil Complex Center; probate, mental health and elder and dependent adult abuse restraining orders at the Costa Mesa Justice Complex; juvenile, family law and domestic violence at the Lamoreaux Justice Center; and, city by city, the justice center designated for criminal and traffic cases.
Judge Layne H. Melzer's standing order for all complex cases assigned to him (Department CX102), which the initiating party must serve: the department's posted policies apply; case management and status conferences (the meet-and-confer subjects and the contents of the Joint Initial Case Management Conference Report); discovery disputes and informal discovery conferences; class actions and PAGA representative actions (discovery, trial management plans, settlements and dismissals); and filing and lodging documents under seal.
Starting April 1, 2025 the Probate Division sets trials through a master calendar: the Master Calendar Trial Statement (Probate) form L-3041 is required; existing trial dates are honored, or may move to the master calendar by agreement; a trial at issue is placed on the Probate Master Calendar for the next available opening.
Judge Andre Manssourian's policies for Department C12 (Central Justice Center): trial call Friday 11:00 a.m. with trials Monday through Wednesday and full Local Rule 317 compliance to answer ready; law and motion Friday 9:30 a.m. by online reservation; non-law-and-motion hearings; mandatory settlement conferences Friday 8:30 a.m.; ex parte applications Monday through Thursday; in-person appearance for trials and trial call and Zoom appearances for other calendars; the department provides no court reporters or interpreters.
The Appellate Division (infraction, misdemeanor and limited civil appeals and misdemeanor writ petitions): submitting filings; oral argument the fourth Thursday of each month by videoconference under Appellate Division Administrative Order 21/01 and rule 8.885(b)(1), without fee; and the division's remote procedure (appearances set by videoconference, privacy and security, the prohibition of photography and recording, technology problems, confidentiality and public access).