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Chapter 2 (Rules 4.60 to 4.64): trial by declaration for traffic infractions (Rule 4.60); clerks' authority in infraction cases (Rule 4.61); prohibited requests in traffic matters (Rule 4.62); requests for ability to pay consideration and civil assessment waiver (Rule 4.63); and appeals (Rule 4.64).
California > First Appellate District > Contra Costa County > Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa
Chapter 2. Adjudication of Infraction Matters Rule 4.60. Trial by Declaration for Traffic Infractions (a) Trial by Declaration in traffic infractions The Court adopts the trial by declaration process defined in Vehicle Code § 40902. (b) Failure to appear or untimely request for action Pursuant to Vehicle Code § 40903, any person who fails to appear as provided by law may be deemed to have elected to have a trial by written declaration upon any alleged infraction, as charged by the citing officer, involving a violation of the Vehicle Code or any local ordinance adopted pursuant to the vehicle code. If there is no timely request for action and the fines and fees are not paid by the due date, the case may proceed to civil assessment pursuant to Penal Code § 1214.1. (c) Adjudication pursuant to CVC 40500 In eligible cases the Court will conduct the trial by declaration and it will be adjudicated on the basis of the notice to appear issued pursuant to Vehicle Code § 40500. (d) Disposition with guilty finding or untimely request for a trial de novo If there is a guilty finding, the conviction shall be reported to the DMV and the defendant notified of the disposition of the case, the amount of imposed fines and fees, and the defendant’s right to request a trial de novo within a specified period of time. If there is no timely request for a trial de novo and the fines and fees are not paid by the due date, the case may proceed to civil assessment pursuant to Penal Code § 1214.1. (Rule 4.60 revised effective 1/1/24) Rule 4.61. Clerks’ Authority in Infraction Cases. For cases that have not been transferred to court collections, deputy clerks are granted the authority to take the following actions at the request of defendants charged with infraction violations: (1) Accept not guilty plea and schedule court trial (also see Local Court Rule 4.80, below). (2) Accept the posting and forfeiting of bail on infraction cases. (3) Set trial de novo (must post full bail with cash or certified funds only). (4) Accept cash, check, credit payment, certified fund if case is in court control. (5) Schedule same day arraignment calendar. (6) Accept proof of correction for correctable violations with a $25 proof fee. (7) Give one time 30-day traffic school extension. (8) Give one time 30-day first appearance extension. (9) Issue subpoenas for cases that have a court trial set. (Rule 4.61 revised effective 1/1/24) Rule 4.62. Prohibited Requests in Traffic Matters The Court will not grant or authorize deputy clerks to grant any of the following requests from defendants or their counsel: (1) For the scheduling of a court arraignment or trial after the finding defined in Vehicle Code § 40902. (2) Remand to county jail in lieu of payment of bail or fines and fees. (3) To grant subsequent extension, following an initial 30-day extension, of time to pay or to provide proof of completion of community service work or traffic violator school or to provide proof of correction of correctable offense(s). (4) To grant out-of-state community service work. (Rule 4.62 revised effective 1/1/24) Rule 4.63 Request for Ability to Pay Consideration and Civil Assessment Waiver (a) Petition to Reduce or Vacate Civil Assessment Defendants seeking to reduce or vacate a civil assessment must submit a written petition to the court requesting such relief. Defendants may use Form TR-320 for this purpose. The petition must be filed in person or by mail to the court location listed on the traffic citation. The petition must include the relevant facts and circumstances leading to the defendant’s failure to appear or pay. Supporting documentation should also be included with the petition. A judicial officer will review the petition and make a determination as to whether there was good cause for the failure to pay and/or appear. Upon making a determination of good cause, the judicial officer may reduce or vacate the civil assessment. A written copy of the determination will be provided to the defendant. A petition to reduce or vacate the civil assessment does not stay any order requiring payment of bail, fines, penalties, fees, or assessments unless specifically ordered by the Court. (b) Ability-to-Pay Determination A defendant in a traffic infraction matter may ask the court for an ability-to-pay determination at adjudication or any time while the assessed fines remain unpaid. Whether or not making the request at time of adjudication, the defendant will be instructed to complete Form TR-320. If an ability-to-pay petition is granted, the court may order the defendant to: (1) Make installment payments; and/or (2) Complete community service to satisfy some or all of the assessed fines and fees. The Court shall consider the burden of community service. A written copy of the determination will be provided to the petitioner. (Rule 4.63 revised effective 1/1/24) Rule 4.64. Appeals (a) The process for filing an appeal in an Infraction case An appeal is taken by filing with the Clerk in the Traffic Division a written notice of appeal signed by appellant or appellant's attorney. The notice shall be filed within the timeframes provided in Rule 8.902 of the California Rules of Court. Any Notice filed after the expiration of the time prescribed shall be marked by the Clerk "received (date) but not filed," and the Clerk shall advise the filing party that it was not filed because it was late. (b) The record on appeal for Infraction cases The Appellate Division elects to authorize the use of the original court file in lieu of a clerk’s transcript as the record on appeal, pursuant to California Rules of Court, Rules 8.910(a)(1)(B) and 8.914. (c) Authorization to use official electronic recording where available in Infraction cases The Appellate Division elects to authorize the use of an official electronic recording, where available, as the record of the oral proceeding instead of obtaining a corrected statement on appeal from the judicial officer who presided over the proceeding before the Appellate Division, pursuant to California Rules of Court, Rule 8.916(d)(6)(A). (Rule 4.64 revised effective 1/1/24)
Chapter 2. Adjudication of Infraction Matters Rule 4.60. Trial by Declaration for Traffic Infractions (a) Trial by Declaration in traffic infractions The Court adopts the trial by declaration process defined in Vehicle Code § 40902. (b) Failure to appear or untimely request for action Pursuant to Vehicle Code § 40903, any person who fails to appear as provided by law may be deemed to have elected
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-10-08 (California T4 Contra Costa build 2026-10-08) from BenchPath custody ca/t4/ca-contra-costa/docs/general/july-2026-local-rules-final_0.pdf (the court's rule book, “Local Rules of Court Effective July 1, 2026”, as fetched 2026-10-08; 24267831 bytes, sha256 580a7d67b663a29aea78edf6b7d0fffb19be65430ad0770cad9f8cb543be811e; 274 pages) with the shared verbatim composer (v2 reflow) over the rules (PDF pages 17 to 191): each page's running header (“Local Rules of the Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa”) and footer (a rule of underscores, “Local Court Rules – Effective July 1, 2026” and “Page N of 201”) removed as chrome; lines reflowed into the rules' paragraphs; Title One's heading and its first chapter heading set on their own lines, eleven rule citations the reflow broke at a line end rejoined, and six tables printed without rules set one row a line - Rule 2.40's attorney fee schedule, two cells of Guideline Attachment 1's commission chart, Attachment 2's attorney rates, Attachment 3's time summary and Attachment 4(a)'s probate calendars (18 whitespace-only fixes); Rule 2.160's local fees and the commission chart's header cells and sixth row, which the reflow read across, set as printed (three same-character fixes); the sixth row's number, in page 180's bottom band, kept (the composer's bottom_band_numbers option); no struck character (the strike report); the rules cut at the chapter headings, which reassemble them (Title Six is “Reserved”: its heading alone); proof 1 (whitespace-only) and proof 2 (same character multiset as the text layer minus chrome) pass. The cover, the table of rule effective dates, the table of contents, the list of local court forms, the index and Appendix A (the standing orders as revised May 15, 2026, superseded by the compilation revised August 11, 2026) belong to no chapter.
Division XI: information forms for data processing (Rule 11.2); required action - action taken on all calendared cases and a future date always set (Rule 11.19); and pro tem judges - an attorney named as a plaintiff in a civil or small claims case may not sit as a judge pro-tem during the case or within six months following its resolution, nor one named as a defendant in two or more such cases (Rule 11.22). Rules 11.1, 11.3 to 11.5, 11.7 to 11.18, 11.20 and 11.21 are repealed, and Rule 11.6 (voluntary arbitration; see Local Rule 10.2) was repealed and renumbered.
Duval County's indigent-defense and magistration rules under the Texas Fair Defense Act (S.B. 7): who may be booked into the county jail and on what paper; arrest-case numbering; presentment to a magistrate within 48 hours (art. 15.16); the magistrate's warnings, counsel inquiry, interpreter duty, indigence determination and appointment of counsel within 24 hours of a request; the alternative appointment plan under art. 26.04(g)-(h) with annual applications, seven attorney categories (capital, first and second degree, third degree/state jail/misdemeanor, competency, appeals, post-conviction, extradition), CLE and experience standards, random rotation within each category, written acceptance within 48 hours, first contact by the end of the next working day, replacement and suspension of counsel, fee applications within five days of completing services and the compensation attachment ($500 pleas; $175/$150 hourly; $1,400 per jury-trial day; appellate caps); bail schedules by offense class with a personal bond office (fee $20 or 3%), pre-trial supervision and revocation hearings within two working days; arraignment settings and notice; repeal of conflicting rules.