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SAN FRANCISCO—Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye today announced that she is asking the Judicial Council to take emergency action to adopt a rule of court to facilitate access to justice for court users challenging traffic fines. “Many of the...

  SAN FRANCISCO—At an urgent open meeting via teleconference, the Judicial Council unanimously adopted a new rule today that directs courts to allow people who have traffic tickets to appear for arraignment and trial without deposit of bail, unless...

  SAN FRANCISCO— Calling the Judicial Council’s year-old open-meeting rule a success, Court of Appeal Justice Douglas P. Miller reported that all the council’s advisory meetings related to court funding and facilities during the first year were open to...

The amnesty program reduces unpaid fines and assessments on qualifying traffic tickets and non-traffic infractions.

California Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye on Monday issued a statewide order suspending all jury trials in California's superior courts for 60 days and allowing courts to immediately adopt new rules to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Emergency meeting of court and branch leaders from around the state will focus on measures to ensure California courts can meet stringent health directives while also providing due process and access to justice.

The measures aim to continue essential court services while guarding the health and safety of the public, court employees, attorneys, litigants, judicial officers, law enforcement, and staff and inmates in detention facilities.

The council's latest temporary emergency rule requires attorneys to electronically serve and receive notices and documents in all general civil actions and family and probate proceedings when requested to do so.

Judges now have discretion to backdate modification requests for child, spousal, partner, or family support orders during the state of emergency.

Amid COVID-19 pandemic, the deadline to hold criminal trials has been extended a total of 90 days.  

The Judicial Council of California has launched the Pandemic Continuity of Operations Working Group, which will quickly collect best practices and publish a framework to help the state's 58 superior courts restore interrupted services in the wake of the...

"The judicial branch is prepared to work with the Governor and the Legislature as we all try to maintain services for the public we serve," the Chief Justice said. Read her full statement.