Loading…
Rule 12 (Rules 12.0 to 12.28): authority and abbreviations (Rules 12.0 and 12.1); the dependency departments, 406 and 425 (Rule 12.2); petitions incorporated by reference, attorneys and child welfare workers, standards of representation, the Dependency Representation Program and complaints about appointed counsel (Rules 12.3 to 12.7); the pre-jurisdiction/disposition timelines and trial setting (Rule 12.8); discovery (Rule 12.9); visitation - the first visit within five (5) days and at least six (6) or three (3) hours a week by age (Rule 12.10); the jurisdiction/disposition report served at least four (4) days before the settlement conference (Rule 12.11); review hearings, continuances requested in writing at least two (2) days before, and remote appearance (Rules 12.12 to 12.14); educational rights holders (Rule 12.15); motions - meet and confer, papers and in limine motions five (5) days before trial (Rule 12.16); W&I § 388 petitions (Rule 12.17); ex parte applications with notice by 10:00 a.m. the court day before (Rule 12.18); juvenile court records (Rule 12.19); the Dependency Mediation Program (Rule 12.20); the procedure for protecting the interests of the child and CASA referrals and reports (Rules 12.21 and 12.22); changes of placement, travel, activities, psychotropic medication and medical treatment (Rules 12.23 to 12.27); and electronic signatures (Rule 12.28).
California > First Appellate District > San Francisco County > Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco
12 Juvenile Dependency 12.0 Authority. These LRSF are intended to supplement state statutes which are found principally in the Welfare and Institutions Code (W&I) and to supplement the California Rules of Court (CRC) relating to Unified Family Court matters (see CRC 5.501-5.562). For the authority for the creation of these rules see Government Code § 68070; W&I Code §§ 317.6(b) and 350 and CRC 5.534. These rules adopt the rules of construction and the severability of clauses in CRC 5.501. These rules together with the protocols found at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court/juvenile-dependency constitute the working procedures of juvenile dependency proceedings (hereinafter referred to as “dependency”) in the San Francisco County Unified Family Court. Failure to abide by these rules may subject both child welfare workers and counsel to fines and sanctions. 12.1 Abbreviations The following abbreviations are used throughout these rules: BASF = Bar Association of San Francisco CASA = Court Appointed Special Advocate from SFCASA CPS = Child Protective Services CRC = California Rules of Court DRP = Dependency Representation Program DSR = Dependency Status Review HSA = San Francisco Human Services Agency IEP = Individualized Education Program LRIS = Lawyer Referral Information Service MDI = Multi-Disciplinary Interview MDT = Multi-Disciplinary Team PPH = Post Permanency Planning Hearing PPX = Post Permanency—Non-Minor Dependents SFUFC = SF Unified Family Court UFC = Unified Family Court W&I = California Welfare & Institutions Code 12.2 Judicial Departments, Assignment of Cases. Cases are assigned to Department 406 and 425 by a direct calendaring system or as assigned by the UFC Supervising Judge. 12.3 Procedure for Incorporating Petitions by Reference. When the Court orders several petitions incorporated by reference under a single petition number, the Court will select the most recent petition number as the designated number for all future documents. Any paper subsequently filed or received by the clerk of the Court must refer to the new number. 12.4 Court Policy Regarding Attorneys and Child Welfare Workers. It is the policy of the UFC to resolve dependency matters in the least adversarial manner that is possible. Attorneys are expected to provide effective and professional representation while at the same time avoiding an escalation of any animosities that might exist. Counsel and child welfare workers must treat each other, parents, witnesses, children, and court staff with dignity and respect. 12.5 Standards of Representation and Practice. All attorneys practicing in the Dependency Court of SFUFC are governed by the Practice Guidelines for Attorneys, available at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court/juvenile-dependency. 12.6 Dependency Representation Program. A. Appointment of Counsel. All children for whom a juvenile dependency petition is filed and all parents and legal guardians who appear and meet guidelines for indigent representation will be appointed counsel from the juvenile dependency panel of attorneys (panel) administered by BASF pursuant to W&I § 317. No appointment of counsel will be made to a parent/guardian who does not appear, unless the parent/guardian is incarcerated or hospitalized or the Court, in its discretion, deems it appropriate to appoint counsel. Parents/guardians not eligible for the appointment of counsel will be referred to BASF/LRIS. B. Requirements of Dependency Panel Attorneys. Panel members must comply with the procedures for admission to each panel as set forth by the Court and BASF/LRIS. New panel members are subject to a minimum six-month probationary period on each panel. All panel members are subject to ongoing peer review as both parents’ counsel and children’s counsel. All panel attorneys must complete a minimum of fifteen (15) hours of continuing education each year in areas relevant to dependency practice. Areas that qualify as “relevant to dependency practice” include, but are not limited to, the following: 1) Use of psychological experts, including direct and cross-examination; 2) Trial skills; 3) Rules of evidence; 4) Training programs that include information on child development, substance abuse, mental health issues, incarcerated parents, etc.; 5) The child witness; 6) Training specifically related to dependency practice such as reasonable efforts, W & I 366.26 hearings, etc.; 7) Programs that provide information on community resources; 8) Domestic violence training; 9) Custody, visitation, and child support issues; and 10) Indian Child Welfare Act issues. In addition to the Practice Guidelines, Dependency Panel attorneys are further governed by the Dependency Representation Program (DRP) manual of the Bar Association of San Francisco available at https://www.sfbar.org/documentslibraries/dependency-policies-procedures-manual-revised-january-2015/. Failure to abide by these Local Rules for Juvenile Dependency, the Practice Guidelines for Attorneys Practicing in the Juvenile Dependency Court or the DRP manual can result in probation, suspension, or removal from the BASF Juvenile Dependency Panel and/or other sanctions or appropriate action by the supervising judge of the Unified Family Court. 12.7 Procedures for Reviewing and Resolving Complaints About the Performance of Court Appointed Dependency Counsel [CRC 5.660(a)(2)(F)]. In the event of a complaint concerning the performance of an attorney appointed to represent a party or child in a dependency proceeding, the complaint must be submitted in writing to the assigned bench officer or the supervising judge of the UFC by the party or child or on the child’s behalf by the social worker, a caretaker, a relative, a foster parent, or a child advocate. The Court may proceed as follows: A. Request the attorney to move to withdraw from the case, and/or B. Request the attorney to submit a written response to the client’s complaint within five (5) days and thereafter determine: 1) whether the attorney acted contrary to the LRSF or practice guidelines. If the Court so determines, the Court may reprove the attorney either privately or on the record, and/or take any other action that the judge deems appropriate, and /or 2) whether that attorney acted incompetently. If the Court so determines, the Court may reprove the attorney either privately and/or on the record, and/or take any other action that the judge deems appropriate. 12.8 Pre-Jurisdiction/Disposition Timelines and Trial Setting. At an initial petition hearing at which time is waived, the Court will set further hearings according to the protocol available at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court/juvenile-dependency. 12.9 Discovery. Discovery will be provided to counsel for presumed parents/guardians and upon court order to counsel for non-presumed and/or de facto parents, if any, as follows: A. Detention/Initial Hearing Discovery. Detention/Initial Hearing Discovery to be provided in court at the first calling of the case or as soon thereafter as practicable includes: 1) Petition; 2) Detention/Initial Hearing Report and Declaration of Efforts; and 3) Documents relied upon in Detention and/or Jurisdiction/Initial Hearing Report to support HSA’s request. 4) In the event of a contested detention hearing, additional documents in HSA’s possession including, but not limited to, prior voluntary agreements, MDI interviews and recordings, police reports and most recent child abuse referral will be provided to counsel in advance of the contested detention hearing. B. Further Discovery. Further Discovery will be provided by the City Attorney’s office in electronic format pursuant to the Juvenile Dependency Pre-Detention Timelines and Trial-Setting protocol available at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court/juvenile-dependency or by request. Further discovery includes, but is not limited to, the following: 1) All petitions, motions, and other filed pleadings; 2) Court Reports; 3) All medical/psychiatric/psychological reports, evaluations, and/or recommendations; 4) All school reports, recommendations, IEPs, and records; 5) Police Reports; 6) MDI interviews and recordings; 7) CPS referrals and/or records; 8) Witness statements; 9) MDT Service Assessments; 10) Multi Agency Screening Team (MAST) results/records; 11) Child welfare worker’s dictation/notes; 12) Electronic communication between HSA, parents, providers, and others including, but not limited, to e-mail and text messages; 13) Drug test results; 14) Visitation notes; 15) Any other documents in the HSA’s actual or constructive possession that were considered or relied upon by the HSA in the evaluation of the case whether favorable or unfavorable to the HSA’s position. C. Subsequent Requests for Discovery. Subsequent requests for discovery must be made on SFUFC Form 12.9. When a request is filed, it must be served on all attorneys of record. The City Attorney's office will make the documents produced available to counsel in an electronic format within fourteen (14) days. D. Ongoing Duty to Produce. After initial production of discovery, the duty to provide discovery as described in this rule continues through the completion of any given hearing, so that any items which are actually or constructively obtained by or become known to the City Attorney/HSA or any of his or her deputies, investigators, or employees, pursuant to this rule, must also be made available forthwith to counsel, entitled to discovery. E. Court-Ordered Evaluations. All attorneys entitled to discovery must receive copies of any court-ordered psychological, medical, substance abuse, or other evaluation conducted upon any party as soon as possible after completion. Upon the approval of the subject of an evaluation, the evaluation may be shared with the subject’s treating mental health professional or expert witness. Absent a court order based upon a specific showing of good cause, copies of any evaluations provided under this section must not be disseminated to the party who is the subject of the evaluation, other parties in the case, or to any third party. If necessary to assist counsel in preparing for the pending juvenile dependency litigation, counsel for the subject of the evaluation may permit the client who is the subject to read the evaluation or portions thereof. No other parties may review the evaluation. The Court may also, on a showing of good cause, make any other orders it determines to be necessary further restricting disclosure of the information contained in these evaluations. Nothing in this rule precludes the evaluator from sharing a verbal or written summary of findings and recommendations with the party who is the subject of the evaluation. F. Protective Order. If at any time during a dependency case, a protective order is desired (e.g., domestic violence and sexual abuse cases), counsel for the party wishing to protect confidential information may file a declaration and proposed order with the Court requesting a protective order and inform all counsel. 12.10 Visitation. Any child taken into temporary custody pursuant to W&I §§ 300, et seq., must have visitation with his/her parent(s) or guardian(s), as follows: A. HSA must set the first visit to occur within five (5) days of the date the child was taken into temporary custody unless HSA can show good cause as to why such visitation should not be granted or should be decreased. B. From the time of detention and until disposition, the visitation must be set as follows unless the HSA can show good cause as to why such visitation should not be granted or should be decreased: 1) Children who are five years or younger must have at least six (6) hours of visitation with their parent(s) or guardian(s) per week. 2) Children who are between six years of age and 17 years of age, inclusive, must have at least three (3) hours of visitation with their parent(s) or guardian(s) per week. 3) Visitation should be as frequent and convenient as possible for all parties. C. If the HSA believes that it cannot comply with a specific visitation order or these local rules, it must immediately notify all parties in writing. As soon as practicable, the parties will meet and confer in an effort to resolve the matter and take appropriate steps thereafter. D. If a parent or guardian misses two (2) visits after confirming and without reasonable justification, visitation may be terminated by written notice to the parent(s) or guardian(s). Reinstatement of visitation suspended pursuant to this paragraph may only be accomplished by agreement with the child welfare worker or by a motion to reinstate visits after counsel have met and conferred. All moving and supporting papers must be served and filed a minimum of ten (10) court days prior to the hearing to be scheduled on the appropriate calendar based upon the phase of the case. All papers opposing the motion must be filed and served at least five (5) court days before the hearing and all reply papers at least two (2) court days before the hearing. E. When the Court has ordered a parent to have reasonable visitation with his or her child and that parent has failed to have any visits with the child or has failed to contact his/her child for a period of not less than six (6) months, the following will apply: 1) If a parent requests a resumption of visitation in a pre-permanent plan case, and if the child welfare worker assigned to the case determines that a resumption of visitation would be detrimental to the child, the child welfare worker must so inform the parent and his/her attorney in writing. The child welfare worker must, through counsel, file and serve a declaration documenting the lack of contact between the parent and child as well as efforts that have been made by the child welfare worker to encourage visitation and contact. The child welfare worker must direct the parent to contact his/her attorney to initiate a visitation motion. If the parent is not represented, the child welfare worker must direct the parent to contact a HSA court officer for appointment of counsel. Where reasonable grounds exist, counsel for the parent may file a visitation motion to reinstate visitation. 2) If a permanent plan has been adopted by the Court in a particular case, and the child welfare worker has denied further visitation because of a failure of the parent to visit or contact the child in six (6) months, the burden will be on the parent to file a motion for a resumption of visitation and to demonstrate that the visitation sought is in the best interests of the child. 12.11 Jurisdiction/Disposition Recommendation. The Human Services Agency must electronically serve the jurisdiction/disposition report to all counsel at least four (4) days before a jurisdiction/disposition settlement conference. If the report is not filed and served at least four (4) days before the scheduled settlement conference, the HSA Court Officer or City Attorney must explain the reason for the failure to do so. The failure to file and serve a timely report may result in the imposition of sanctions on the child welfare worker or Agency. 12.12 Dependency Review Hearings. When any party opposes the recommendation set forth in the review report, the matter will be set for a contested evidentiary hearing unless the parties agree that further efforts to meet and confer may be successful and, in those cases, the matter will be continued for no more than two (2) weeks for further review or mediation except under extraordinary circumstances. 12.13 Requests for Continuance. Any request for a continuance of any hearing shall be granted only upon a showing of good cause. A continuance must be requested in writing at least two (2) days prior to the date set for hearing unless the Court for good cause entertains an oral motion for continuance. Counsel seeking a request for continuance of any contested hearing must endeavor to calendar the written notice and affidavits/declarations in support thereof as soon as practicable. 12.14 Remote Appearance. A. General Procedures Instructions to appear remotely in juvenile dependency proceedings using the Court’s designated remote appearance platform will be provided by the clerk of the department where the matter is set. Instructions to appear remotely may also be obtained by emailing the departmental clerk. Departmental email addresses as well as instructions for remote appearances can be found on the Court’s website at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court. “Party” as used in this rule is defined in CRC 3.672(i)(1)(B). Any person authorized to be present at a juvenile dependency proceeding under CRC 5.530(b) is authorized to appear in-person or remotely by video or telephone using the Court’s designated remote appearance platform, unless the Court requires an in-person appearance. It is not necessary for a person authorized to be present at a juvenile dependency proceeding under CRC 5.530(b) to file a REQUEST TO APPEAR REMOTELY-JUVENILE DEPENDENCY (form RA-025) before making a remote appearance. To oppose a remote appearance by a person authorized to be present at a juvenile dependency proceeding under CRC 5.530(b), a party must file and serve a REQUEST TO COMPEL PHYSICAL PRESENCE-JUVENILE DEPENDENCY (form RA-030) and deliver a courtesy copy of that form as well as a proposed ORDER REGARDING REMOTE APPEARANCE (form RA-020) to the clerk of the department in which the proceeding will be held no later than close of business two court days before the proceeding. Parties appearing by video or telephone shall be continuously connected to the Court’s designated remote appearance platform ten minutes prior to the scheduled hearing and remain connected until 12:00 p.m. for morning hearings and until 4:30 p.m. for afternoon hearings or until the party’s proceeding has concluded. Failure to comply with this rule may result in the Court conducting the proceeding as if the party failed to appear. B. Contested Hearings In all contested dependency matters, counsel are required to appear in person if their client appears in person. If their client appears in person, counsel may only appear remotely if they have received prior approval from the court and consent from their client. Counsel must file and serve a Form RA-025 with the Court at least 2 court days before the hearing date. Prior to filing and serving a witness list, parties and their counsel must meet and confer to determine whether they agree for a witness to appear remotely. Whether a witness will appear remotely or in-person must be indicated in each party’s witness list. If the parties agree for a witness to appear remotely, the witness may appear remotely and it is not necessary to file a REQUEST TO APPEAR REMOTELY-JUVENILE DEPENDENCY (form RA-025). If the parties do not agree for a witness to appear remotely, that witness must appear in-person. 12.15 Form JV-535 Designating Educational Rights Holder (CRC 5.649) A. Preparing the Forms 1) The name, address and contact information of the designated educational rights holder must be provided on the JV-535. 2) At disposition hearing, HSA must prepare and file the form JV-535 and form JV-535A reflecting the Court’s order. 3) At any subsequent hearing, the party requesting a change in educational rights holder must prepare and file the form JV-535 and form JV-535A. B. Confidentiality The Court will file the JV-535 in a confidential envelope only if the box which indicates that disclosure will create a safety risk is checked. 12.16 Motions. A. Meet and Confer. All attorneys must meet and confer prior to filing any noticed motion. All motions must be supported by a declaration by counsel for the moving party concerning efforts to meet and confer. B. Hearings. Motions will be set for hearing in the case’s assigned department. Motions will be set on the calendar appropriate to the phase of the case. C. Filing of Moving and Opposing Papers. The filing of moving and opposing papers must conform to the time requirements of the Code of Civil Procedure, § 1005 and CRC 3.1110, et. seq., unless otherwise described by these local rules or an order shortening time has been granted. In addition, CRC 3.1112 and 3.1113 apply to the content and length of any memorandum of points and authorities. All papers filed in support or opposition to any motion must indicate the time, calendar, and department on the front page. Example: Date: August 2, 2016 Time: 1:15 p.m. Dept: 406 Calendar: DSR Copies of all motions must be provided to the San Francisco HSA court office. In addition, a courtesy copy of all motions must be lodged in compliance with LRSF 2.7. D. In Limine Motions. All in limine motions must be filed and served five (5) days before the first day of trial. The hearing on such motions will be heard on or prior to the first day of trial by the judicial officer conducting the trial. E. Document Retention. Within the time for filing a notice of appeal, each party must retrieve any exhibits and deposition transcripts introduced at the hearing. The Court will return the exhibits and deposition transcripts to the party who introduced the exhibit or deposition transcript. Each party must maintain and preserve any exhibits or deposition transcripts until sixty days following final determination of the action, including any appeals, and must make such records available to the court reporter on request during that time. Any exhibits or deposition transcripts unclaimed within the time for filing a notice of appeal will be destroyed by the Court at its sole discretion. 12.17 Procedure for Filing of Petitions Pursuant to W&I § 388. Petitions seeking to modify court orders based upon a change of circumstance or new evidence, pursuant to W&I § 388, must be filed in room 402, the UFC court clerk’s office. Counsel should propose hearing dates on the calendar appropriate for the phase of the case. Any person submitting such a petition on behalf of a currently represented party must meet and confer with other counsel concerning the request for the proposed change of order and use Judicial Council Form JV-180 (Request to Change Court Order). The JV-180 and proposed JV-183 (Court Order on Form JV-180, Request to Change Court Order) and JV-184 (Order After Hearing on Form JV-180, Request to Change Court Order) forms shall be served upon all counsel. An original and at least one copy of each form must be submitted to the court clerk with a stamped self-addressed envelope. Opposing parties must file any documentation either in support of, or in opposition to, the JV-180 petition within four court days of service of the JV-180, JV-183 and JV-184. Within 24 hours of receipt of the signed and endorsed-filed copy of the JV-183 order, the person seeking the request must provide notice of the date and time of the hearing, and serve the petition by e-mail, facsimile or U.S. mail, on all parties and the HSA court office. If the person seeking the order is not a party to the case, the UFC court clerk will give notice to all parties and counsel. 12.18 Ex Parte Applications (See CRC 5.151 for appropriate use). A. Filing of Ex Parte Application The court clerk will set the matter for ex parte hearing upon the filing of an ex parte application, which must be filed in room 402, the UFC court clerk’s office on or before the next court day prior to the ex parte hearing. B. Notice Requirements. Notice of an ex parte hearing must be provided to counsel by telephone or email no later than 10:00 a.m. on the court day prior to the hearing. Notice must include the date, time, and department of the ex parte hearing. In extraordinary circumstances, if good cause is shown that immediate danger and/or irreparable harm is likely if notice is provided to the other party, the Court may waive this notice requirement. C. Proof of Notice Requirements. At the time of the ex parte hearing, the party seeking ex parte relief must file a declaration under penalty of perjury regarding compliance with the notice requirements. If the other parties are not timely and properly noticed, the party seeking ex parte relief must file a declaration under penalty of perjury detailing the efforts made to provide notice and why those efforts were unsuccessful. D. No Notice Required. Notwithstanding the noticing requirements set out above, ex parte applications for the following orders do not require notice: orders for the appearance of prisoners; orders for out of court interpreter services; orders concerning representation of a party; and requests for orders for the authorization of funds for expert witnesses or for any individual whose work will be considered to be the attorney’s work product. Orders for the appearance of prisoners must be presented to the courtroom bailiff for processing. Other procedures concerning the transportation of prisoners are available in the dependency courtrooms. All other requests must be presented to the courtroom clerk where the matter is pending. Signed orders may be picked up from the clerk’s office in Room 402. E. Pleading Requirements. All ex parte applications must include: 1) A Declaration in support of an ex parte application based upon personal knowledge, signed under penalty of perjury, specifically including the reason relief is requested, the factual basis for that relief, the nature of the emergency requiring immediate relief, and whether the relief requested changes an existing court order; 2) Proof of timely notice to all parties; 3) Request for order; 4) A proposed order. F. Service of Pleadings. Absent good cause, the party seeking ex parte relief must provide copies of all documents in support of the ex parte application to the other parties no later than 10:00 a.m. on the court day prior to the ex parte hearing. G. Hearing Procedures. The Court will decide the ex parte application on the papers. The Court, in its sole discretion, may conduct some or all of the ex parte proceedings in open court. 12.19 Access to and Copying of Juvenile Court Records. Access to and copying of juvenile court records are governed by W&I § 827 and CRC 5.552. A. All Petitions for Disclosure of Juvenile Dependency Court Records must be filed in room 402, the UFC court clerk’s office at the Civic Center Courthouse, 400 McAllister Street using Judicial Council form JV-570. B. When a hearing is required, it will be set within 30 days of the date the application is filed. The court clerk will notice all relevant parties of the hearing date. Any request to have the hearing set in less than 30 days must be done in a separate application for order shortening time. C. If the petition is granted, the judicial officer will conduct an in camera review to determine what documents will be copied and produced. The documents will generally be available within two (2) weeks of the hearing date. D. The moving party must notify the court clerk if the documents are no longer needed or the matter is to be taken off calendar. Failure to provide such notice may result in sanctions. If the moving party does not pick up the documents within 60 days after notice that the documents are available, the documents will be destroyed and a new 827 petition will need to be filed. 12.20 Dependency Mediation Program. The San Francisco Superior Court has a dependency mediation program to provide a problem-solving forum for all interested persons to develop a plan in the best interests of the child, emphasizing family preservation and strengthening. The protocol for the Court’s dependency mediation program can be found at https://sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court/juvenile-dependency. 12.21 Procedure for Protecting the Interests of Child. At any time following the filing of a petition under W&I § 300 and until UFC jurisdiction is terminated, any interested person may advise the Court of information regarding an interest or right of the child to be protected or pursued in other judicial or administrative forums. Judicial Council Caregiver Information Form (JV-290), Juvenile Dependency Petition (JV- 100) and Modification Petition Attachment (JV-180) may be utilized. 12.22 CASA Referrals. A. Time of Appointment of CASA. The Court may order the appointment of a CASA volunteer at or after the dispositional order of the Juvenile Court. The judge hearing a dependency case may order the appointment of a CASA volunteer earlier in the proceedings if warranted by the special circumstances of a child. B. Requests for Referrals. Any party, attorney representing a party or child, the child welfare worker, or other person having an interest in the welfare of the child may request that the Court make a referral to San Francisco CASA using form 12.21. C. Assignment of CASA Volunteer. San Francisco CASA must evaluate the referral based on the criteria then in effect, CRC 5.655, and the availability of volunteers. If SFCASA rejects the referral, it must send a letter explaining the rejection to the Court. If SFCASA accepts a referral, it will assign a volunteer, submit an order to the Court appointing a specific volunteer, and notify the following of the appointment: child welfare worker, mother's, father's, and child's attorneys, CASA volunteer, foster parent(s) or other placement, and CASA records. If there are additional parties (e.g., de facto parents or guardians), SFCASA must serve those parties with a copy of the order. D. CASA Reports. Court reports prepared by CASA volunteers must be filed with the Court and served upon all counsel at least ten days prior to the hearing for which they are prepared. E. CASA Volunteers Serve at the Pleasure of the Court. A CASA volunteer serves at the pleasure of the Court. A CASA volunteer is an officer of the Court who is appointed to investigate the proceedings on behalf of the Court and serves until he or she resigns, is removed by the SFCASA Director, or by further order of this court. The appointment of the CASA volunteer terminates once the entire action has been dismissed or the jurisdiction of the Court has been terminated. 12.23 Notification of Change in Placement. In order to ensure that proper notice is received by parents or legal guardians, Education Rights Holders, and attorneys for parents, legal guardians, de facto parents, and children of any change in a child's placement, HSA must, in addition to any notice required by statute (W&I § 361.2(h)), provide notice of the change in placement to Education Rights Holders and the attorneys for the parents, de facto parents, and child as follows: 1) In non-emergency situations, notice of the change of placement must be given at least five (5) days prior to a move within San Francisco. 2) Prior to any change of placement outside of San Francisco, HSA must provide notice 14 days prior to a move unless emergency circumstances prevent such notice. 3) In emergency circumstances, as mentioned in parts 1 and 2 above, HSA must give notice within 48 hours (two days) following the child's removal from his/her placement. 4) For changes of placement within San Francisco, notice may be by telephone or in writing, and must include: a) the reason for the anticipated change of placement, including details regarding a Child and Family Team meeting and whether or not a placement preservation strategy meeting has occurred as required by W&I § 16010.7, b) the anticipated date of the move, c) the anticipated type of placement, d) the anticipated city of new placement, e) the address and contact information of new placement for minor’s counsel, and any plans for change in each child’s school placement. 12.24 Authorization for Travel by Out of Home Placement Dependent Children Within the Unites States and United States Territories. A. In cases where there is a request for a child who is in the custody of HSA to travel within the United States and its territories (for less than 30 days), HSA may authorize such travel without a court order. HSA must provide reasonable notice to parents and all attorneys of record. B. In cases where the request for a child to travel is for over 30 days or for travel outside the United States and its territories, HSA must obtain authorization from the Court with a minimum of 15 days notice to parents and all attorneys of record. C. Prior to authorizing travel under this rule, HSA must schedule make-up visits for any court-ordered visitation that is cancelled as a result of the travel. HSA must also provide telephone or video contact between the child and parent/guardian during the travel if appropriate. 12.25 Participating in Extracurricular, Enrichment, and Social Activities. See W&I § 362.05. 12.26 Authorization to Administer Psychotropic Medication to Out of Home Dependent Children of the Court. All applications for authorization to administer psychotropic medication must be reviewed by a designee of the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the results of the review must be provided to the court on the local form “JV-220 Reviewer Statement”. The HSA Child Welfare Worker is responsible for providing notice. All required forms must be submitted to the Supervising Judge of the Unified Family Court or his/her designee. 12.27 Authorization for Ordinary Medical, Dental, and Mental Health Treatment. A. Definition of Ordinary, Medical, Dental, and Mental Health Treatment. Ordinary medical, dental, and mental health care includes but is not limited to: 1) Comprehensive health assessments and physical examinations, including but not limited to: sight, speech, and hearing examinations as well as all Child Health and Disability Program (“CHDP”) medical assessments; 2) Any routine medical care required, based on the results of the comprehensive health assessment, including but not limited to: hearing aids, glasses, and physical therapy, or for the care of any illness or injury; 3) First aid care for conditions which require immediate assistance; 4) Administration of routine medication, including but not limited to: analgesics, insulin, cold medication, or antibiotics; 5) Medical care for minors with health care complaints, including but not limited to colds, flu, chicken pox, cuts, broken bones; 6) Clinical laboratory tests necessary for evaluation or diagnosis of the minor's health status, including but not limited to: blood tests, X-Rays, and CT Scans; 7) Immunizations recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics; 8) Mental health assessment required for mental health services, including but not limited to Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (“CANS”) Assessments; 9) Mental health services, based upon the results of the CANS assessment or any other mental health assessment; and 10) Dental assessment and any routine dental treatment required pursuant to the results of the dental assessment, or for the ordinary treatment of dental health, including but not limited to teeth cleanings and x-rays. B. Procedure for Obtaining Order for Consent to Treatment. 1) Generally. W&I § 369 sets forth the responsibilities of the Court and the HSA for handling the consent to, and treatment of, minors in the dependency system with respect to their ordinary medical, dental, and mental health care. HSA is responsible for obtaining required authorization for ordinary medical, dental, and mental health care for minors who appear to come within the provisions of W&I § 300. Before requesting court authorization, HSA must first seek parental consent. When parental consent cannot be obtained, HSA may then seek court authorization. 2) When Court Order is Required for Ordinary Medical, Dental, and Mental Health Care. If the parent or guardian is unavailable (e.g., whereabouts unknown), unable (e.g., incarcerated or incompetent), or unwilling to consent to ordinary medical, dental, or mental health care, court authorization is required. 3) Parent Unavailable, Unable, or Unwilling. a. Where HSA seeks court authorization for treatment without parental consent, HSA must submit an application for a proposed order for court authorization that includes: 1. Request by HSA for authority to consent to ordinary medical, dental, and mental health treatment and release of information, on behalf of the minor only as it is required to obtain such treatment. 2. Request by HSA for authority to release information on behalf of the minor only as it is required to obtain such treatment. 3. Sunset provision indicating the order expires at such time as a parent presents him or herself to HSA and is able and willing to sign consents and releases of information, on behalf of the minor. b. To support the proposed order, HSA must provide a declaration by an HSA City Attorney stating that all counsel have been provided 24 hours notice and do not object; as well as, when necessary, evidence from the HSA Child Welfare Worker describing efforts to locate and engage a parent. For all pre-jurisdictional proceedings, the evidence must include a statement that the health care provider is recommending that the treatment is necessary. c. If there is an objection to the request for an order authorizing ordinary medical, dental, or mental health treatment, and consent is not required on an emergency basis, the Court will conduct a hearing on the objection before ruling on the request for court authorization. Procedure The Court will set the matter in Department 405 on the following JV-220 calendar if the objection cannot be addressed on another calendar. d. If HSA seeks consent for ordinary medical, dental, or mental health treatment that is needed on an emergency basis (e.g., consent to treat required for placement of a minor), and a minor’s parent is unwilling to consent, HSA must submit an application for a proposed order for court authorization that includes: 1. Request by HSA for authority to consent to ordinary medical, dental, and mental health treatment and release of information, on behalf of the minor only as it is required to obtain such treatment. 2. Sunset provision indicating the order expires at a hearing set for the parent to object before the Court on the JV-220 calendar. 3. To support the proposed order, HSA must provide a declaration by an HSA City Attorney stating all counsel have been noticed; as well as, evidence from the HSA Child Welfare Worker describing the emergency nature of the request and efforts to locate and engage a parent. 4) Medical Screening. To ensure the safety and physical well-being of minors after they are taken into protective custody and temporarily detained in out-of-home placement and prior to any juvenile court intervention, HSA may authorize a non-invasive medical screening for purposes, including but not limited to: a. To determine whether the child has an urgent medical need that requires immediate attention. b. To determine whether the child poses a health risk to other persons. c. To determine an appropriate placement to meet the child’s needs. The HSA Child Welfare worker must make reasonable attempts to notify the parent(s) that the minor will be undergoing a non-invasive initial medical, dental, and mental health screening. If a parent objects, the screening may be conducted only upon an order of the Court. 12.28 Electronic Signatures. The Court accepts electronic signatures on documents Conventionally filed in a juvenile dependency case. Any party, attorney, or agency who electronically signs a document that is Conventionally filed with the Court must either (a) sign the document using an electronic signature that is unique to the signer, capable of verification, under the sole control of the signer, and linked to data in such a manner that if the data are changed, the electronic signature is invalidated or (b) physically sign a printed form of the document before filing and retain the original signed document to be made available for inspection and copying at the request of the Court or any other party. Adopted: July 1, 1998 Last Revised: July 1, 2026
12 Juvenile Dependency 12.0 Authority. These LRSF are intended to supplement state statutes which are found principally in the Welfare and Institutions Code (W&I) and to supplement the California Rules of Court (CRC) relating to Unified Family Court matters (see CRC 5.501-5.562). For the authority for the creation of these rules see Government Code § 68070; W&I Code §§ 317.6(b) and 350 and CRC 5.5
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-10-08 (California T4 San Francisco build 2026-10-08) from BenchPath custody ca/t4/ca-san-francisco/docs/local-rules/final-proposed-changes-lrsf-effective-july-1-2026-submitted.pdf (the court's rule book, “Uniform Local Rules of Court, Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco, Effective: July 1, 1998, Revised: July 1, 2026”, as fetched 2026-10-08; 2706376 bytes, sha256 82645c96954e6d459832c1ee68c5a042ff7f90ebc58fceb9a82fc7c5575631ad; 251 pages) with the shared verbatim composer (v2 reflow) over the rule body (PDF pages 3 to 235): each page's running header (“Local Rules of Court San Francisco Superior Court” and “Rule N”) and footer (“Effective: ...; Revised ...” and the printed page number) removed as chrome; lines reflowed into the rules' paragraphs; the one struck letter in the book (the final “s” of “means” in Rule 2.11(A)(5), read on the page image) set aside as chrome with the composer's strike_out, so the card reads the rule as amended; four rule headings set on their own lines and 23 paragraph breaks the reflow made inside sentences rejoined (whitespace-only fixes); the body's one soft hyphen (Rule 12.15's “JV-” at a line end) read as the hyphen it prints and the reflow's space after it removed; Rule 11's two tables (the timeshare percentages and their definitions) set row by row (the same characters); the body cut at the rule headings, which reassemble it; proof 1 (whitespace-only) and proof 2 (same character multiset as the text layer minus chrome) pass. The cover, the table of contents and the index belong to no rule.
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.