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The citation and effect of the rules, supplementary and subject to statutes and the California Rules of Court (1.1); construction and application (1.2); definitions (1.3); sanctions under Code of Civil Procedure § 575.2 for failure to comply (1.4); the court's organization - one unified Superior Court under Government Code § 70200, organized into a criminal division, a family law division and a civil division, and the list of Rules 2 to 21 (1.5); hours of business determined by the presiding judge, and the drop box (documents left after 4:00 pm filed as of the following court business day) (1.6); courtroom dress and decorum (1.7); smoking prohibited in court facilities and within 20 feet of main entrances, exits and operable windows (1.8); remote appearances by case type - general provisions, non-evidentiary civil cases, civil evidentiary hearings and trials, small claims, unlawful detainer, temporary restraining orders in civil harassment, elder abuse, workplace violence and school site violence matters, probate, family law (how to appear remotely at the family law calendar page), domestic violence and gun violence restraining orders, criminal matters (Rule 8.15), juvenile justice and juvenile dependency (1.9); and the bias complaint procedure under standard 10.20(d) - the written Notice of Concern to the Presiding Judge or Court Executive Officer, and complaints (1.10).
California > First Appellate District > Sonoma County > Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma
RULE 1 GENERAL 1.1 CITATION AND EFFECT OF RULES These rules are the local rules for the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma or local rule for short. These rules are supplementary and subject to statutes and the California Rules of Court; any conflict with such rules and statutes is unintentional. These rules shall supersede all rules previously adopted by the superior courts of the County of Sonoma. These rules shall have no retroactive effect or application. 1.2 CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF RULES These rules are liberally construed to ensure the just and speedy determination of the proceedings they govern. Division, section, rule, and paragraph headings do not affect the scope, meaning, or intent of the provisions of these rules. If any part of a rule is deemed invalid, all valid parts that are severable from the invalid parts stay in effect. If a rule is held invalid in one or more of its applications, it remains in effect in all valid applications that are severable from the invalid applications. 1.3 DEFINITIONS The definitions in the California Rules of Court apply to these rules unless the context or subject matter here requires otherwise. As used in these rules: 1. “County” means the County of Sonoma, State of California. 2. “Court” means the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma, and shall include and apply to any judge, commissioner, or referee who is a duly appointed or elected member of this Court and to any judge who has been assigned by the Chairman of the Judicial Council to serve, and is serving, as a judge of this Court, including any retired judge who is so assigned and is serving, and any attorney designated by the presiding judge as a temporary judge. 3. “Rule” is a local rule of the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma. 4. “Clerk” means the clerk and any deputy clerks of the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma. 1.4 SANCTIONS FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH RULES Any counsel, party represented by counsel, or “self-represented” litigant who fails to comply with any of the requirements set forth in the rules will, upon motion of a party or the Court, be subject to the sanctions set forth in Code of Civil Procedure § 575.2. Other sanctions provided by statute, or the California Rules of Court may also apply. 1.5 ORGANIZATION A. Pursuant to Government Code § 70200, there is one unified Superior Court for the County of Sonoma. The Court is organized into a criminal division, a family law division, and a civil division. Each division is governed by the following rules: Rule 2 Rules Applicable to Small Claims Case and Unlawful Detainer Cases Rule 3 Rules Applicable to Court Reporting Services Rule 4 Rules Applicable to All Civil Cases Rule 5 Rules Applicable to Civil Law and Motion Proceedings Rule 6 Rules Applicable to Probate, Conservatorships and Guardianship Proceedings Rule 7 Rules Applicable to Default, Uncontested, and Compromise Proceedings Rule 8 Rules Applicable to Criminal Trial Proceedings Rule 9 Rules Applicable to Family Law Proceedings Rule 10 Rules Applicable to Juvenile Court Proceedings Rule 11 Rules Applicable to Appellate Division Proceedings Rule 12 Superior Court Commissioner Rule 13 Rules Applicable to Trial Jury Service Rule 14 Rules Applicable to Civil Grand Jury Service Rule 15 Rules Applicable to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Rule 16 Applications for Ex Parte Orders Rule 17 Rules Applicable to Filing and General Procedure Rule 18 Executive Officer- Clerk of the Superior Court Rule 19 Rules Applicable to Media Coverage Rule 20 Rules Applicable to Traffic Infractions Rule 21 Communication Among Criminal, Family and Juvenile Courts (Eff. 1/1/1997; Rev. 7/1/2005, 1/1/2011, 1/1/2021, Rev. and Renumbered 1/1/2023, Rev. 1/1/2024, 7/1/2025) B. In the event of any inconsistency between these rules and any California statute or any of the rules in the California Rules of Court, the latter statute or rule shall control. (Eff. 1/1/1997; Rev. 1/1/2001, Renumbered 1/1/2023, Rev. 7/1/2024) 1.6 HOURS OF BUSINESS Excluding court holidays or other days as may be designated by the Court, the official hours of the Sonoma Superior Court are determined by the presiding judge and posted at the clerk’s offices at each facility and on the Court’s website. A drop box is available for parties wishing to deposit documents after the end of the Court business day. However, documents left in the drop box after 4:00 pm, will be filed as of the following court business day. (Eff. 1/1/1997; Rev. 1/1/2006, 1/1/2010, Renumbered 1/1/2023, formerly Rule 20, Rev. 7/1/2024) 1.7 RULES APPLICABLE TO THE COURT’S COURTROOM DRESS AND DECORUM POLICY Proper attire and decorum for a court appearance displays respect for the court and shows the court that the involved persons take the case seriously. A. In a courtroom, the Court may prohibit wearing or displaying clothing, tattoos, or other items that reasonably could be considered to intimidate witnesses or others present or undermine the integrity of the judicial process. B. As determined by the judicial officer, any person in improper attire will be asked to either remove or adjust the inappropriate clothing or leave the courthouse and return at the date and time specified by the Court. C. No one may disturb the courtroom while the Court is in session. D. All persons in a courtroom must turn off all cell phones and electronic devices and store them out of plain view. E. Eating, drinking, chewing gum and using tobacco products are prohibited in all courtrooms. The Court may provide water at the counsel table for those participating in the session, which includes jurors, witnesses, counsel, and litigants. F. Communication with inmates is prohibited. (Eff. 7/1/2010, Renumbered 1/1/2023; formerly Rule 25, Revised 7/1/2024) 1.8 RULE PROHIBITING SMOKING IN COURT FACILITIES Smoking is prohibited in all public buildings, including all court areas, lobby areas, bathrooms, courtrooms, jury deliberation rooms, and jury assembly areas and within 20 feet of main entrances, exits and operable windows of public buildings per § 7597, Chapter 32, Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code. (Eff. 1/1/1997; Rev. 7/1/2007, Renumbered 1/1/2023, formerly Rule 14, Revised 7/1/2024) 1.9 RULES APPLICABLE TO REMOTE APPEARANCES PER CASE TYPE A. Purpose This rule aims to provide greater access to justice, promote court efficiency, and facilitate remote appearances consistent with Code of Civil Procedure § 367.75 and California Rules of Court, Rule 3.672. The subsections concerning remote hearings in domestic violence and gun violence restraining order matters are adopted pursuant to Family Code § 6308(b) and Penal Code § 18123(b). As stated below, this rule sets forth the remote proceeding protocols for civil case types. B. General Provisions Regarding Remote Appearances 1. Unless otherwise outlined in this rule or ordered by the Court, trials and evidentiary hearings will be held in person. A judicial officer may order that a specific evidentiary hearing or trial be conducted by remote appearance, in whole or in part. In that instance, any party objecting to the remote hearing or trial shall file their objection as provided in Rule 3.672(h) or, at the Court’s discretion, may object at the time the matter is discussed with the Court, if insufficient time otherwise exits to comply with Rule 3.672(h). 2. Unless an in-person appearance is expressly ordered by the Court or otherwise required by law, attorneys and self-represented parties are permitted to appear at a non-evidentiary hearing via remote technology rather than in person. Parties who appear remotely will be deemed to have requested a remote appearance without having previously filed a Notice of Remote Appearance and received an approved Order Regarding Remote Appearance. In any hearing not set explicitly by the Court to be conducted by remote appearance, a party may appear remotely upon a judicial officer’s finding under Rule 3.672(j)(2) of good cause, unforeseen circumstances, or that the remote appearance would promote access to justice. 3. Any party intending to appear remotely for non-evidentiary proceedings must provide notice to all parties or persons entitled to receive notice before the commencement of the hearing. The notice may be given informally by phone, e-mail, or text. No advance notice to the Court is required before the date of the hearing. 4. A judicial officer may terminate a remote hearing and continue the matter to a future in-person hearing according to Code of Civil Procedure § 367.75(b) or Rule 3.672(d). 5. A remote hearing is subject to all Local Rules and Rules of Court governing decorum in the courtroom. A remote hearing is also subject to all laws and rules governing confidentiality, photographing, and courtroom proceedings recordings. No one appearing remotely may record, photograph or reproduce any hearing, or any part of a hearing, including any screenshots. Any person who violates this provision shall be subject to all sanctions provided under the law for a like action in an in-person hearing. C. Non-evidentiary Civil Cases 1. Parties in civil case management, civil law and motion and other non-evidentiary civil matters (such as minor’s compromise petition) may appear remotely as set forth above. 2. The Court waives notice of parties appearing remotely for these matters. Parties do not need to file a Notice of Remote Appearance or obtain an Order Regarding Remote Appearance. The party appearing remotely must provide notice to all parties or persons entitled to receive notice before the commencement of the hearing. The notice may be given informally, including by telephone, e-mail or text message. D. Civil Evidentiary Hearings and Trials 1. For evidentiary hearings and jury or bench trials, including small claims trials, parties and witnesses must appear in person unless the Court has granted prior express authorization for a remote appearance. 2. The time frames and procedures for remote appearance requests and oppositions are set forth in Rule 3.672(h). E. Small Claims All small claims trials and evidentiary hearings will be held in person. Upon at least ten (10) days advance request of a party, or in the Court’s discretion, a judicial officer may order that a specific evidentiary hearing or trial be conducted by remote appearance, in whole or in part. In that instance any party objecting to the remote hearing or trial shall file their objection as provided in California Rules of Court, Rule 3.672(h) or, at the Court’s discretion, may raise the objection at the time the matter is discussed with the Court, if insufficient time otherwise exists to comply with Rule 3.672(h). A remote hearing is subject to all Local Rules and Rules of Court governing decorum in the courtroom. A remote hearing is also subject to all laws and rules governing confidentiality, photographing and recordings of proceedings in a courtroom. No one appearing remotely may record, photographs or reproduce any hearing or part of a hearing, including any screenshots. Any person who violates this provision shall be subject to all sanctions provided under the law for uh like action in an in-person hearing. F. Unlawful Detainer Matters All unlawful detainer matters, including law and motion matters, shall be presumed to require an in-person appearance. To obtain permission to appear remotely in any unlawful detainer matter, the procedures identified in section (D) above, addressing evidentiary proceedings, apply equally to unlawful detainer cases. G. Temporary Restraining Orders in Civil Harassment, Elder Abuse, Workplace Violence, and School Site Violence Matters Ex parte requests for temporary restraining orders will be ruled upon on the pleadings without a hearing. All later proceedings set for hearing shall be presumed to require an in-person appearance. To obtain permission to appear remotely in any hearing on a Civil Harassment, Elder Abuse, Workplace Violence or School Site Violence Restraining Order case the procedures identified in section D above, addressing evidentiary proceedings, apply equally to hearings for Civil Harassment, Elder Abuse, Workplace Violence and School Site Violence Restraining Order Cases. H. Probate Matters 1. Parties in any non-evidentiary hearing set in the Probate Department may appear remotely as set forth in subsection (C). 2. The Court waives notice of parties appearing remotely for these matters. Parties do not need to file a Notice of Remote Appearance or obtain an Order Regarding Remote Appearance. The party appearing remotely must provide notice to all parties or persons entitled to receive notice before the commencement of the hearing. The notice may be given informally, by phone, e-mail or text. 3. For evidentiary hearings and trials, subsection (D) provisions shall apply. I. Family Law Matters 1. Parties in any non-evidentiary hearing set in the Family Law Department may appear remotely as set forth in subsection (C). 2. The Court waives notice of parties appearing remotely for these matters. Parties do not need to file a Notice of Remote Appearance or obtain an Order Regarding Remote Appearance. The party appearing remotely must provide notice to all parties or persons entitled to receive notice prior to the commencement of the hearing. The notice may be given informally, including by telephone, e-mail or text. 3. For evidentiary hearings and trials, the provisions of subsection (D) shall apply. 4. Information on how to appear remotely for a Family Law matter can be located at: https://sonoma.courts.ca.gov/online-services/court-calendars/family-law-calendar. J. Domestic Violence and Gun Violence Restraining Orders 1. Instructions for remote appearances in domestic violence and gun violence restraining order hearings will be posted on the Court’s webpage: http://sonoma.courts.ca.gov/self-help/domestic-violence. 2. The Court designates the judicial assistant for the department hearing each respective case as the phone number for the public to call to obtain assistance regarding a remote appearance. The designated judicial assistant phone numbers will be posted on the restraining order webpage above. These phone numbers will be staffed from 30 minutes prior to the start of the court session at which the hearing will take place and during that court session. K. Criminal Matters Please see Rule 8.15. L. Juvenile Justice 1. Unless otherwise outlined in this rule or ordered by the Court, trials and evidentiary hearings will be held in person. A judicial officer may order a specific evidentiary hearing or trial be conducted by remote appearance. 2. Unless an in-person appearance is expressly ordered by the Court or otherwise required by law, attorneys, and parties are permitted to appear at a non-evidentiary hearing via remote technology rather than in person. Parties who appear remotely will be deemed to have requested a remote appearance. In any hearing not set specifically by the Court to be conducted by remote appearance, a party may appear remotely upon a judicial officer’s finding of good cause, unforeseen circumstances, or that the remote appearance will promote access to justice. 3. Pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code § 676(a), the Court may allow persons deemed to have a direct and legitimate interest in a particular case or the work of the Court to appear remotely. The Court must apply the same confidentiality requirements to a remote juvenile justice proceeding as apply to a justice proceeding conducted in person. 4. Any party intending to appear remotely for non-evidentiary proceedings must provide notice to all parties or persons entitled to receive notice prior to the commencement of the hearing. The notice may be given by phone, e-mail, or text. No advance notice to the Court is required before the date of the hearing. 5. A judicial officer may terminate a remote hearing and continue the matter to a future in-person hearing. 6. A remote hearing is subject to all Local Rules and Rules of Court governing decorum in the courtroom. A remote hearing is also subject to all laws and rules governing confidentiality, photographing, and courtroom proceedings recordings. No one appearing remotely may record, photograph, or reproduce any hearing or any part of a hearing, including any screenshots. Any person who violates this provision shall be subject to all sanctions provided under the law for a like action in an in-person hearing. M. Juvenile Dependency 1. Rule 3.672(i) shall apply to Juvenile Dependency matters. 2. All confidentiality requirements applicable to in-person Juvenile Dependency proceedings shall apply equally to remote hearings. Suppose the Court cannot ensure that a remote appearance will have the privacy and security necessary to preserve the confidentiality of the proceeding. In that case, the judicial officer may order any person to appear in person and elect to terminate a remote hearing and continue the matter for a later in-person appearance. (Eff. 1/1/2023, Revised 7/1/2023, 7/1/2024) 1.10 BIAS COMPLAINT PROCEDURE PURSUANT TO CALIFORNIA RULES OF COURT, STANDARD 10.20(d) A. Purpose To preserve the integrity and impartiality of the judicial system, the Court shall: 1. Ensure fairness. Ensure that courtroom proceedings are conducted in a manner that is fair and impartial to all the participants. 2. Refrain from and prohibit biased conduct. In all courtroom proceedings, refrain from engaging in conduct and prohibit others from engaging in conduct that exhibits bias based on age, ancestry, color, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status, including whether that bias is directed toward counsel, court personnel, witnesses, parties, jurors, or any other participants. 3. Ensure unbiased decisions. Ensure that all orders, rulings, and decisions are based on the sound exercise of judicial discretion and the balancing of competing rights and interests and are not influenced by stereotypes or biases. B. Notice of Concern Procedure If an individual has a concern about compliance with the mandates set forth above in subsection (A) by the Court or by any courtroom participant, then: 1. The individual may submit a written Notice of Concern to the Presiding Judge or Court Executive Officer, which identifies all courtroom participants and the specific behavior or conduct occurring in the courtroom of concern. 2. The Notice of Concern procedure intends to educate all parties to ameliorate the concern rather than discipline the person who is the subject of the notice. 3. To the extent possible and unless disclosure is required by law, the Court shall protect the confidentiality of the noticing party, the person who is the subject of the notice, and other interested persons. 4. The focus of this procedure is on incidents of concern: a. Bias based on age, ancestry, color, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status; b. Whether that bias is directed toward counsel, court personnel, witnesses, parties, jurors, or any other participants; and c. Where the incident does not warrant discipline but requires education and correction. 5. Courtroom activities constituting legitimate advocacy when matters concerning age, ancestry, color, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status which are relevant to issues in the courtroom proceeding are exempt from this Notice of Concern procedure. C. Complaint Procedures 1. With respect to any incident that if substantiated would warrant discipline against a judge, the concerned individual may file a formal complaint with the Commission on Judicial Performance. 2. Nothing in this procedure in any way shall limit the ability of any person to submit a formal complaint of misconduct regarding any courtroom participant to the Commission on Judicial Performance or the appropriate disciplinary body. 3. A complaint about a courtroom participant should be sent as follows: a. Complaint regarding a Superior Court Judge: The Commission on Judicial Performance (CJP) 455 Golden Gate Avenue, Suite 14400 San Francisco, California 94102 Website: https://cjp.ca.gov/file_a_complaint/ b. Complaint regarding a Court Commissioner: Presiding Judge Sonoma County Superior Court 625 Administration Drive Santa Rosa, California 95403 c. Complaint regarding a Member of Court Staff or a Court Contractor: Court Executive Officer Sonoma County Superior Court 625 Administration Drive Santa Rosa, California 95403 d. Complaint regarding an Attorney: State Bar of California 100 Howard Street San Francisco, California 94105 Website: www.calbar.ca.gov/Public/Complaints-Claims e. Complaint regarding a Courtroom Bailiff: Sonoma County Sheriff Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office Sheriff-Professional-Standards@sonoma-county.org (Adopted 7/1/2026)
RULE 1 GENERAL 1.1 CITATION AND EFFECT OF RULES These rules are the local rules for the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma or local rule for short. These rules are supplementary and subject to statutes and the California Rules of Court; any conflict with such rules and statutes is unintentional. These rules shall supersede all rules previously adopted by the superior courts of the Coun
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-10-08 (California T4 Sonoma build 2026-10-08) from BenchPath custody ca/t4/ca-sonoma/docs/local-rules/local-rules-working-jul-2026-new-address-update.pdf (the court's rule book, “Local Rules of Court Effective July 1, 2026”, as fetched 2026-10-08; 1515969 bytes, sha256 e3a9b3a99af553adf4c33851ccbc58bbbfb1020ec74e105c1225b9e6d076c102; 204 pages) with the shared verbatim composer (v2 reflow) over Rules 1 to 21 (PDF pages 8 to 189), each rule composed alone from its first page to the page before the next rule's: each page's running header (“SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SONOMA”, two rules of underscores and the page number) removed as chrome; lines reflowed into the rules' paragraphs; eight breaks the reflow made before a citation or history note's “Rule N.N” at a line start rejoined and eleven paragraph, heading, history and list-line breaks it ran together set back (19 whitespace-only fixes, build/book-fixes.json; the vertical-gap audit finds no joined break left); four struck characters (tracked deletions on PDF pages 70, 98, 176 and 184; the strike report) left out; proof 1 (whitespace-only) and proof 2 (same character multiset as the text layer minus chrome) pass. The cover, the list of the court's judicial officers, the table of contents, the index, the forms listings and the list of currently effective rules belong to no rule. Review note: Rule 1.9(J)(1) says instructions for remote appearances in domestic violence and gun violence restraining order hearings will be posted on the Court's webpage http://sonoma.courts.ca.gov/self-help/domestic-violence; the page, read on 2026-10-08, carries no remote appearance instructions - where the court posts them is a review task.
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.