Orange Superior Court Filing Rules

Actions involving CEQA or Toxic Waste must be designated as complex litigation on the Civil Case Cover Sheet, in addition to actions that may be provisionally designated under California Rules of Court, rule 3.400.

An ex parte application must include a separate proposed order in Word format.

All counsel must prepare a list of stipulated facts and make a good-faith effort to stipulate to as many documents, foundational waivers, and similar matters as possible.

Ex parte applications must make an affirmative factual showing of irreparable harm, immediate danger, or a statutory basis, demonstrate proper notice, and state whether the application will be opposed.

Ex parte applications must include declaration showing irreparable harm, demonstrate notice, and state whether opposed.

A motion disputing whether a matter is a collection case must be filed within 30 days after service is completed on the first defendant if brought by the plaintiff, or on the moving defendant.

Ex parte applications must be filed by 3:00 p.m. the business day before the hearing.

Ex parte hearing reservations must be made with the department by 12:00 p.m. the day before the hearing.

Ex parte applications must be filed by 1:30 p.m. on the day before the hearing.

Ex parte applications must be filed and courtesy copy delivered by 12:00 p.m. the day before the hearing.

Ex parte applications must be filed electronically by 1:30 p.m. on the day before the hearing.

MSC statements must be e-filed.

Oppositions to ex parte applications must be e-filed – and courtesy copies delivered to the courtroom – no later than 12:00 p.m. the day of the hearing.

All ex parte papers must be e-filed by 11:00 a.m. on the court day before the ex parte hearing.

Parties must e-file the Notice of Withdrawal prior to the hearing.

Disputed verdict forms must be submitted to the Courtroom Clerk in Word format.

Any attorney-fee provision in the written contract must be highlighted with a light-colored highlighter pen.

Trial Notebook binders must be no larger than 3 inches; multiple binders are acceptable.

Proposed orders must be submitted in editable word-processing format.

Stipulations should leave space for the court to add appropriate terms.

The arbitrator must promptly notify the ADR Administrator of known grounds for disqualification, after which another arbitrator will be appointed under the rules.

Do not call the department to inquire about a tentative ruling if none has been posted.

Trial call is at 9:00 a.m. on the first trial day in Department N18; remote access is available via the Civil Remote Hearings link.

The clerk in Department CX102 must be notified of the ex parte filing by 12:00 noon on the court day before the hearing.

Ex parte hearing reservations must be made with the department by 10:00 a.m. the day before the hearing.

Courtesy copies of ex parte applications must be delivered to the courtroom by 3:00 p.m. the business day before the hearing.

Ex parte courtesy copies must be delivered to the courtroom by 3:00 p.m. the business day before the hearing, with the e-filing transaction number written on the first page.

Two separate courtesy copies of the Joint Exhibit List must be provided to the Clerk.

Do not deliver courtesy copies, trial binders, exhibit binders, or deposition transcripts until instructed by Department N17.

The Notice of Lodging of Deposition Transcripts must be accompanied by a courtesy copy to the court.

A party adding parties through a pleading must serve CMC notice on the newly added parties when serving that pleading.

Notice to all parties must be given by 10 a.m. on the court day before the ex parte hearing.

Parties must timely file and serve a Case Management Conference Statement in accordance with California Rules of Court rules 3.720 through 3.734.

Demonstrative aids must be shown to opposing counsel at least 24 hours before use.

In limine motions must be exchanged and discussed by the Issue Conference, and counsel must meet and confer about them.

The completion time for a stipulated judgment or periodic-payment agreement may be extended for good cause on noticed motion.

Motions will not be continued or taken off calendar after the tentative ruling is posted.

Continuance requests must demonstrate good cause per CRC 3.1332(c).

The Court will not entertain continuance requests or further filings once a tentative ruling has been posted.

Arbitration continuances require a stipulation signed by the arbitrator, a declaration of good cause, and an order rescheduling the Arbitration Review hearing.

The court requests that motions in limine be placed in a binder separate from the Trial Notebook's other contents.

Several in limine motions may be bundled in a separate binder and delivered with the trial notebook.

Declarations in summary judgment motions must be filed separately, not attached to the motion or memorandum.

Stipulations must be submitted as one WORD-format document so the court can modify the order portion.

Motions in limine should be placed in a separate binder from the rest of the Trial Notebook.

The moving party must make good-faith efforts to speak with the opposing party to determine its position on the ex parte application.

Parties must meet and confer in good faith before filing any motion in limine.

The Court strongly encourages the Parties to work out their differences informally. The moving and responding Parties are expected to engage in meaningful meet and confer conversations in person, telephonically, or over remote videoconference, not through email, prior to filing any discovery motion.

In limine motions must be exchanged and discussed no later than the Issue Conference, with a good-faith meet-and-confer requirement.

A motion to continue the hearing beyond 90 days must be set before the judicial officer who signed the Arbitration Referral order.

The parties may request that the copy of the payment agreement be confidential.

MSC statements are kept confidential if properly identified in the e-filing.

Impeachment exhibits may be marked as 'confidential' when uploading to the Portal.

MSC statements will be kept confidential and marked 'Received'.

MSC statements that are properly identified in e-filing will be kept confidential.

Failure to post jury fees within 10 days of trial setting may result in an Order to Show Cause re: Sanctions.

A party with a fee waiver is exempt from electronic filing fees and costs when filing documents electronically.

Ex parte application fee must be paid at the Civil Clerk's Office before presenting documents in court.

The fee for each ex parte application must be paid in the Civil Clerk's Office before presenting the documents in the courtroom.

The parties must agree on the division of applicable jury fees and reporter fees, which are due each day before trial begins.

IDC joint letter brief limited to 4 pages.

IDC briefs limited to 6 pages and must be filed 3 court days before the conference.

Each side may file no more than five motions in limine, each limited to five pages; exceeding either limit requires leave of court.

Only one attorney may argue per party unless the court permits more, and the request may note an opportunity for a less experienced attorney.

Counsel should prepare junior attorneys to examine a witness or argue a motion.

Only one attorney per party may argue unless the court permits more to allow a less experienced attorney to argue.