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Department 11's information for counsel (Spring Street Courthouse), a complex civil department: the judge's philosophy; status conferences; e-service providers; appearances and etiquette; informal discovery conferences; informal resolution of demurrers and other challenges to the pleadings, and of motions to tax costs; motions; filing and lodging documents under seal; PAGA and class action settlements and dismissals; taking hearings off calendar promptly; motions for summary judgment or adjudication; class actions and PAGA claims; final status and trial readiness conferences (including trial briefs); mandatory settlement conferences; and voir dire and jury selection (trial generally Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).
California > Second Appellate District > Los Angeles County > Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles > Spring Street Courthouse > Department 11
Los Angeles Superior Court Spring Street Courthouse Department 11 Courtroom Telephone No.: (213) 310-7011 INFORMATION FOR COUNSEL 1) JUDGE CUNNINGHAM’S PHILOSOPHY Judge Cunningham is pleased to assist in any and all efforts to promote efficiently, productivity and progress on all cases pending in Department 11. The Court is dedicated to helping the attorneys do the best job they can for their clients as a means of ensuring a fair and efficient trial for both sides. Please embrace the enhanced court management facilitated by California Rules of Court for Complex Cases (Rule 3.400 et seq.) as an opportunity for both sides to save time and money prosecuting and defending the case. a) The Court is Available for Informal Conferences on Short Notice To promote progress in the case, the Court is available, on short notice, to confer with both sides to resolve urgent and non-urgent issues and disputes. Parties who reach an impasse during a deposition may telephone the courtroom to arrange an immediate conference call with the Court. For other discovery disputes, the parties may request an information conference by making a joint posting on the e-service bulletin board. The Court conducts all IDCs remotely using LACourtConnect. The procedures for Informal Discovery Conferences (IDCs) and Pleadings Conferences are explained in great detail below. b) Ex Parte Applications Should Not be Necessary The Court's willingness to conduct informal conferences on short notice should obviate the time and expense necessary to litigate ex parte applications for emergency relief. Before investing any time in the preparation of an ex parte application, please post a joint request for an informal conference on the e-service bulletin and contact the courtroom staff to obtain a time and date. 2) STATUS CONFERENCES As soon as a new case is assigned to Department 11, the Court issues an Initial Status Conference ('ISC") Order that stay all proceedings pending the parties' appearance at the ISC. The Parties must submit a joint ISC statement as directed in that Order. In preparation for the ISC, please consider whether obtaining a ruling on a key issue in the case will (a) eliminate or reduce the need for discovery, and/or (b) help the parties evaluate the case for purposes of settlement. For example, a party who intends to demur or seek summary adjudication on a statute of limitations defense but has concerns that the Court will deny the motion (based on triable issues of fact) might propose to limit initial discovery and conduct an early bifurcated trial on that issue. At the ISC, the court will invite discussion designed to head duplicative or unnecessary motions. For example, if a party intends to move for summary judgment or adjudication, the court may question whether a single motion for summary adjudication encompassing all grounds is more efficient. The court may inquire whether the opposing party is willing to amend the pleading to avert a demurrer or motion for judgment on the pleadings and may urge the parties to meet and confer to resolve any pleadings disputes. (See discussion in Section 7 below). The Court will conduct regular Further Status Conferences as the case progresses. The Court requires the parties to file a joint statement outlining recent progress in the case five court days prior to every status conference. If the parties agree that they are making progress and there is no particular reason to appear for a status conference, they may file (at least five court days prior) a stipulation and proposed order to continue the status conference that explains why the conference should be continued. 3) E-SERVICE PROVIDERS At the ISC, the Court will issue an order appointing an electronic service provider (either CaseAnywhere, File&ServeXpress or CaseHomePage). These services enhance efficiency for the parties and the Court by permitting immediate communication and providing access to an electronic docket. After the Court appoints the e-service provider, the parties should effectuate service through the e-service provider, mindful that the e-service provider is not a substitute for filing documents in court. To property file a document in Court, a party should file it in court in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure and the Rules of Court. The Court will not download documents from the e-service providers for filing. The e-service providers' bulletin boards provide a mechanism for immediate communication directly with the Court. The Court requires the parties to make joint postings rather than unilateral postings on the bulletin boards because the Court cannot ethically receive ex parte communications from one side or the other. Even though both sides can view the bulletin board postings, unilateral postings are technically ex parte communications. Although Judicial Canon 3B(7)(b) creates an exception for ex parte communications "for scheduling [purposes]," even those communications are permitted only where the judge reasonably believes neither side will gain a procedural tactical advantage and both sides are promptly notified and allowed an opportunity to respond. 4) APPEARANCES AND ETIQUETTE For purposes of convenience, the Court is willing to conduct status conferences and motion hearings remotely using video and telephonic connections via LACourtConnect. To avoid feedback and background noise while using LACourtConnect, please mute your telephone or computer when you are not speaking. Please also make sure that your computer meets the specifications identified on the Court's website and that you have a strong internet connection. 5) INFORMAL DISCOVERY CONFERENCES (IDCs) Judge Cunningham strongly encourages the parties to work to amicably resolve rather than litigate discovery disputes as a faster and less expensive approach. The Code of Civil Procedure, Section 2016.090, now specifically authorizes parties to stipulate to initial disclosures without further requests. The court expects the parties to inform the court whether you have proposed any such initial disclosures. Judge Cunningham requires the parties to meet and confer twice via telephone or video conference before requesting an IDC and expects the parties to extend the time for filing motions to compel to accommodate this process. When the parties meet and confer, counsel for the propounding party should be prepared to proposed language narrowing requests the other side regards as overly broad. Counsel for the responding party should be ready to convey specific facts and circumstances supporting a client's claim that responding will be unduly burdensome. If there is an issue of attorney-client or work product privilege, the party resisting discovery should prepare a privilege log identifying the communication, the person originating each communication., and all persons who received it. Both sides should recognize that the Code of Civil Procedure identifies the exact language a party's responses should set forth to communicate that the party has no responsive documents or information. See C.C.P. §§ 2030.220(c) (interrogatories); 2031.230 (documents). Once a party has provided verified responses with the necessary language, the Court has no basis for compelling further responses. The e-service bulletin boards provide an expeditious vehicle for scheduling IDCs. The parties' joint posting should very succinctly describe the nature of the impasse. Judge Cunningham requires the parties to make a joint posting even if one side contends that an IDC is premature or unnecessary. A unilateral posting requesting an IDC is only appropriate when the other side has completely ignored or refused repeated requests to meet and confer; it should not include any argument or information beyond a description of the impasse and the facts substantiating the other side's failure or refusal to meet and confer. The Court will promptly respond to a joint posting requesting an IDC and can usually schedule the IDC to take placer within a few days' time. IN accordance with Section 2016.080(c)(2), the Court's order scheduling the IDC will stay any deadline to file a motion to compel. If there are more than a few issues in dispute, the Court will ask the parties to cooperatively prepare a joint statement that (a) identifies each overarching disputed issue (e.g., the relevant time frame for discovery, the scope of discovery on an issue involving alleged privacy rights); and (b) very briefly sets forth (in less than one page of text) each side's position with respect to it. Judge Cunningham prepared to conduct IDCs in person (via LACourtConnect video conference) but is willing to confer with counsel telephonically. At the IDC, Judge Cunningham will work to mediate an agreed upon resolution of the discovery disputes and will not issue any rulings on disputed matters. If the parties cannot agree on a resolution or a process for resolution, the Court will invite the parties to litigate the dispute using a streamlined process such as a joint statement presenting opposing positions in a point/counterpoint format. 6) INFORMATION RESOLUTION OF DEMURRERS AND OTHER MOTIONS TO CHALLENGE OR AMEND THE PLEADINGS All too often, a defendant prepared and files a demurrer only to have the plaintiff file an amended complaint (or answer) that moots the demurrer before the hearing date. It is also very common for the court to overrule a demurrer because it improperly requires the Court to look beyond the allegations in the complaint or fails to dispose of an entire cause of action. To avoid the inefficiency of preparing, opposing and potentially hearing demurrers that are moot or to otherwise cannot be granted, the court requires the parties to meet and confer in real time (video conference or telephone) before preparing any motion challenging or seeking to amend the pleadings. Before such a motion is filed, the Court also requires the parties confer with the Court, either at a status conference or an informal pleadings conference scheduled in response to a joint posting on the bulletin board. 7) INFORMAL RESOLUTION OF MOTIONS TO TAX COSTS Although the allowable costs are plainly identified in Coe of Civil Procedure Section 1033.5, parties commonly seek recovery of non-allowable costs. Please meet and confer with opposing counsel in an effort to agree upon recoverable costs and to avoid unnecessary motions to tax costs. 8) MOTIONS The Court expects counsel to identify all intended motions when counsel appear for status conferences so that the Court can explore, with counsel, whether the Court can reach the substantive issue such a motion and whether the proposed motion is the most efficient and effective "next step" in the proceedings. The parties should not surprise the court by filing motions they have not proposed to the Court. Before starting work on a motion not previously discussed with eCourt, a party should request, via the bulleting board, an information conference with the court, or porose the motion at the next status conference. To reserve a hearing date for a motion please telephone the Courtroom Assistant at (213) 310-7011. Parties must strictly adhere to the page limitations in California Rules of Court 3.113(d). Parties must file an application under Rule 3.113(e) to obtain permission to file a memorandum longer than 15 pages (20 pages for summary adjudication motions). 9) FILING AND LODGING DOCUMENTS UNDER SEAL All parties must strictly comply with California Rules of Court 2.550 and 2.551. The Court cannot seal documents filed in Court merely because the parties agree they should be sealed. The Court's obligation to conduct all proceedings with transparency means that the Court must make specific findings as to every sentence in every document that a party wishes to file under seal. The Court must be persuaded that there is a legal justification for sealing. The sealing order must be narrowly tailored to seal only the specific information that is protected by the right to privacy, the trade secrets law, or other applicable protections. Confidential documents submitted in connection with discovery motions are not governed by Rules 2.550 and 2.551. To file confidential material in connection with discovery motions, the parties should (a) narrowly identify and redact the confidential information from the confidential document; (b) submit an unredacted version in a sealed envelope stapled behind the caption page of the document (making sure that the caption page states that the submission is for a discovery motion); and (c) file a redacted version of the document (making it available to the public in the court file). 10) PAGA AND CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENTS AND DISMISSALS Parties seeking preliminary or final approval for class action settlements should carefully adhere to the guidelines posted on the Court's website. Parties seeking to dismiss class claims must carefully follow Rule 3.770 which, among other things, requires a filed declaration describing the consideration "in detail." Court approval is required for "any proposed settlement of any civil action filed pursuant to" PAGA. (Labor Code § 2699(1)(2). To obtain court approval, the parties must demonstrate that the terms of the settlement are "fair to those affected." (Williams v. Superior Court (2017) 3 Ca.5th 531, 549.) A motion or application for approval must therefore establish the settlement is fair to the aggrieved employees, the LWDA, the employer, the plaintiff and plaintiff's counsel. A PAGA plaintiff can only release claims for civil penalties that the LWDA could have recovered for the violations alleged in the plaintiff's original notice to the LWDA. 11) PROMPTLY TAKE HEARINGS OFF CALENDAR To help the Court avoid unnecessary preparation for motions that will not be heard, the moving party must inform the Court, at the earliest possible moment, that a matter will go off calendar. This is required under California Rules of Court 3.1306(b). Please also post the announcement on the e-service bulletin board and telephone the courtroom. 12) MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT OR ADJUDICATION Please carefully review and strictly comply with California Rules of Court Rule 3.1350. Please remember to address evidentiary objections to a single objectionable sentence using one of the formats set forth in CRC 3.1354 (requiring specific identification of each "objectionable statement" and the basis for each objection "to that statement"). The Court will overrule multiple objections directed to a paragraph or to a series of sentences because this formatting improperly delegates to the Court Counsel's obligation to specify which objection is made to each statement. The Court does not have discretion to order a shortened notice period; it does have discretion to hear a motion for summary judgment or adjudication fewer than 30 days before the trial date. Please note that the time allotted by the Code of Civil Procedure for reply briefs in summary judgment/adjudication motions (five calendar days prior to the hearing) does not give the Court enough time to prepare a written tentative ruling. To avoid a continuance of the hearing date, please meet and confer before the motion is filed to agree upon a briefing schedule that will require the reply brief to be filed at least five court days before the hearing. Please remember that a party moving for summary judgment or summary adjudication must initially produce admissible evidence to make a prima facie showing that there is no triable issues of material fact. Code of Civil Procedure Section 437c(c); Aguilar v. Atlantic Richfield Company (2001), 25 Cal.4th 826, 850. If the moving party makes this showing, the burden shifts to the opposing party to make a prima facie showing that a triable issue of material fact does exist. Id. The Court will analyze the motion by first determining whether it is a "no evidence" or a "tried and true" motion and then determining whether the moving party has introduced sufficient evidence to shift the burden of proof. (Brantley v. Pisaro, (1996) 42 Cal.App.4th 1591,1598.) The Court therefore strongly encourages a moving party to structure the moving papers to begin with a section that identifies the evidence it relies on to shift the burden of proof as to each element of any cause of action it seeks to negate. A plaintiff moving for summary judgment or adjudication should be aware that, to shift the burden of proof to the defendant, a plaintiff (or cross-complainant) must show that there is no triable issue of fact as to every affirmative defense and also "prove each element of [each] cause of entitling the party to judgment on that cause of action." C.C.P. § 437c(p)(1). This means that to obtain summary judgment, a plaintiff must, among other things, prove that he or she is entitled to damages and prove the amount of damages for each cause of action. DeCastro, West, Chodorow & Burns, Inc., v. Superior Court (1996) 47 Cal.App.4th 410, 419. A defendant seeking summary adjudication based on an affirmative defense (as opposed to the negating of an element of the plaintiff's claim) has a similar burden to prove that there are no triable issues of fact as to every element of the affirmative defense. Please also remember that a defendant (or cross-defendant) who moves for summary judgment or adjudication asserting that there is "no evidence" of an essential element of a claim must demonstrate that the plaintiff does not possess, and cannot reasonably obtain, evidence necessary to establish the claim. Aguilar, 25 Cal. App.4th at 854. To obtain summary judgment based on the plaintiff's "factually devoid" discovery responses, the defendant should present more than a single discovery response such as an answer to an interrogatory or a question in deposition. To succeed, the defendant must demonstrate factually devoid responses to a variety of comprehensive discovery mechanisms. Scheiding v. Dinwiddie Construction Co. (1999) 69 Cal.App.4th 64, 88-81. 13) CLASS ACTIONS AND PAGA CLAIMS The Court's standard practice at the initial status conference in a wage and hour class action is to (1) lift the stay on discovery pertaining to class certification and (2) order the parties to implement the Bel Aire West procedure for disclosing class contact information to plaintiff's counsel (sharing the cost). Under the Complex Court's tab on the Court's website are guidelines and checklists for motions for preliminary approval of class action settlements. Please consult and carefully comply with the guidelines and checklists. Before granting motions for class certification, Judge Cunningham requires the moving party to submit a class action trial management plan as described by the California Supreme Court in Duran v. U.S. Bank National Association (2014) 59 C. 4th 1 and its progeny. The trial management plan should identify witnesses and make specific offers of proof on each element of each cause of action and the damages to be tried. It should identify matters of common proof and address presentation of evidence for relevant affirmative defenses whether or not the defenses turn on individualized issues. Please attached the trial management plan as an exhibit to any motion for class certification. The Court similarly requires plaintiffs to prepare a PAGA trial management plan. 14) FINAL STATUS/TRIAL READINESS CONFERENCES ("TRCs") The Court normally sets TRCs approximately two weeks before the trial date. a) Meet and Confer In preparation for the TRC, the parties shall meet and confer and jointly prepare the Trial Readiness Documents to be filed and lodged with the court. The parties shall also work to reach stipulations to ultimate facts, legal issues, motions in limine and the authenticity/admissibility of exhibits. b) Exhibit Binders The parties shall jointly prepare, and be fully prepared to lodge at the TRC, three sets of tabbed, internally paginated and properly marked exhibits, organized numerically in three-ring binders (a set for the court, the Judicial Assistant and the witnesses). The parties shall mark non-documentary exhibits and insert a simply written description of the exhibit behind the corresponding numerical tab in the exhibit binder. c) Trial Readiness Documents At least 5 calendar days prior the TRC, the parties shall serve and file the following Trial Readiness Documents: d) Trial Brief Each party shall file a trial brief succinctly identifying: i) the claims and defenses subject to litigation; ii) the major legal issues (with supporting points and authorities); iii) the relief claimed and calculation of damages sought; and iv) any other information that may assist the Court at trial. e) Motions In Limine Before filing motions in limine, the parties shall comply with the statutory notice provisions of Code of Civil Procedure Section 1005 and the requirements of Local Rules 3.57(a). The caption of each motion in limine shall concisely identify the subject of the motion and designate the specific evidence sought to be precluded. Parties filing more than one motion in limine shall number them consecutively. Parties filing opposition papers shall identify, in the caption, the number of each motion to which it responds. Before and after filing motions in limine, the parties shall meet and confer in an effort to reach stipulations resolving disputes over the admissibility of evidence and to limit the contested motions in limine to a manageable number. Please remember that motions asking the court to exclude large categories of evidence (e.g., "all evidence not disclosed in discovery") are not appropriate for adjudication in limine. The Court cannot decide whether a party unfairly withheld information in discovery until it receives an offer of specific evidence, an objection to that evidence, the discovery requests asking for the specific evidence, and the objections raised by the responding party. Please also recognize that in many cases, the Court is not in a position, at the outset of trial, before hearing preliminary or foundational evidence, to issue an order excluding evidence in limine. When that is the case, please file a bench brief addressing the evidentiary issue rather than a motion in limine. f) Joint Jury Statement For jury trials only, the parties shall file a joint statement of the case to be read to the jury (Los Angeles County Court Rules, Rule ("Local Rule") 3.25(i)(4)). Alternatively, the parties may agree to provide Mini-Opening Statements (five minutes or less per side). g) Joint Witness List The parties shall file a joint list of all witnesses that each party intends to call (excluding impeachment and rebuttal witnesses). Local Rule 3.25(i)(5). The joint witness list shall identify each witness by name, each expert witness, the expected length, in tenths of an hour, of the direct and cross examination of each witness, and any potential scheduling problems or special requirements. Any party who seeks to elicit testimony from a witness not identified on the joint witness list will have to make a showing of good cause. h) Joint Exhibit List The parties shall prepare and file a joint exhibit list that includes columns identifying each exhibit offered without objection or specifying each party's evidentiary objections to its admission. To comply with Local Rules 3.52(i)(5) and 3.53, the parties shall meet and confer in an effort to resolve objections to the admissibility of each exhibit. i) Joint Jury Instructions The parties shall jointly prepare and file a list of jury instructions and a complete set of full-text proposed jury instructions, editing all CACI instructions to insert party names, remove blanks and remove irrelevant material. The parties shall prepare special instructions in a format suitable for submission to the jury (placing citations of authority and the identity of the requesting party above the text pursuant to Local Rules 3.170 and 3.171). j) Joint Verdict Form The parties shall prepare and jointly file a proposed general or special verdict form with interrogatories. If the parties cannot agree on a joint verdict form, each party must separately file a proposed verdict form. Local Rule 3.25(i)(7) and (8). k) Trial Readiness Binder and USB Drive The parties shall jointly prepare and lodge, at the TRC, one set of tabbed 3-ring binders containing copies of the parties' Trial Readiness Documents. The parties shall organize motions in limine behind tabs identifying the moving, opposition and reply papers to each motion. The parties shall organize proposed jury instructions behind tabs separating (A) the parties' jointly approved jury instructions; (B) the proposed instructions that have elicited an objection; (C) any proposed special instructions; and (D) any agreed-upon special verdict form, or the competing proposed special or general verdict forms. The parties should also provide electronic copies of trial readiness documents on a USB drive for the Court. 15) MANDATORY SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES Unless the parties have exhausted efforts to settle the case by recently engaging in private mediation, the Court will order a Mandatory Settlement Conference before commencing trial. The principals for each side must participate in the MSC and have executive authority to authorize a settlement on the terms demanded by the other side at the time of the MSC. 16) PROCEDURE FOR VOIR DIRE AND JURY SELECTION The Court extensively questions the jurors in an effort to uncover bias for or against the parties. Please submit proposed questions for the Court voir dire. The Court and counsel direct voir dire questions to all 35+ jurors on the panel and select the jury using the following procedure: a) The Courtroom assistant hands each juror a card with a number (usually 1-35) before he or she enters the courtroom. Juror Nos. 1-14 sit in the box and the remaining jurors sit in numerical order in the audience. b) The Court reads the Statement of the Case or the parties provide Mini-Opening Statements. c) The Court conducts extensive voir dire of the entire panel (taking into consideration any proposed questions that counsel submit for consideration). d) The Parties direct voir dire questions to the entire panel. e) The Court hears and decides challenges for cause (in chambers, with the court reporter present.) f) The Court excuses jurors for cause and fills the vacancies I the box with the next-numbered jurors. g) Each juror in the box answers the standard questions regarding area of residence, military service, occupation, etc.) If any answer suggests any basis for a challenge for cause, the Court will inquire and invite the parties to follow up with additional questions. h) The Parties exercise preemptory challenges as to the jurors in the box until a jury of 14 or more (depending on the number of alternates) is selected. i) The Clerk administers the jurors' oath. j) To encourage all jurors to be fully attentive, the Court defers the random selection of alternate jurors until the close of evidence. The Court generally conducts trial Monday through Friday, from 9:30 a.m to 4:30 p.m., depending on the Court's calendar. 09/13/23
Los Angeles Superior Court Spring Street Courthouse Department 11 Courtroom Telephone No.: (213) 310-7011 INFORMATION FOR COUNSEL 1) JUDGE CUNNINGHAM’S PHILOSOPHY Judge Cunningham is pleased to assist in any and all efforts to promote efficiently, productivity and progress on all cases pending in Department 11. The Court is dedicated to helping the attorneys do the best job they can for their clie
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-09-29 (California T3 Los Angeles build 2026-09-29) from BenchPath custody ca/t3/ca-los-angeles/dept/CourtroomInformation_SS_11.pdf (149772 bytes, sha256 2a84d972746fb6530ba7ec7b1e6fbe992427e489871841282a267115ea111fd1; 11 pages) with the shared verbatim composer (v2 reflow, drawn-glyph reading): page numbers, pleading line numbers and running headers or footers removed as chrome; lines reflowed into the sheet's paragraphs; proof 1 (whitespace-only), proof 2 (same character multiset as the text layer minus chrome) and proof 3 (same characters as the glyphs drawn on the page) all pass. Attached to the department only (review task): The sheet refers to Judge Cunningham, who is not on the court's current bench; the app lists no judicial officer for Department 11.
1 verbatim requirement on judge preferences.
20 verbatim requirements on judge preferences.