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Statewide emergency actions and updates on county court services and operations here.

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Feature - March 28, 2022

Going Online to Settle Small Claims a Big Hit

Los Angeles County's online tool is just one of the programs in the state helping parties settle their cases without a trip to the courthouse.

remote access

Innovations

Technology

Graphic showing online dispute resolution

Feature - December 20, 2021

2021 Year in Review: Judicial Council of California

In 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic continued to challenge the state’s ability to ensure access to justice for the citizens of California. But like the previous year, California’s Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye and the Judicial Council supported the courts as they remained flexible and innovative to ensure the justice system was open and vital services remained accessible to the public.

News Release - October 28, 2020

Fifth District Court of Appeal Engages in Online Community Outreach

Fresno City College business law students will have the opportunity to virtually attend a public live-stream video of oral argument and participate in a question-and-answer session with several of the justices via an online meeting platform.

Fifth District Court of Appeal

Fifth Appellate District

Civics

News Release - October 20, 2020

Fresno Superior Court Announces Collaborative Court Expansion

DUI Court will focus on reducing recidivism by rigorous monitoring, combined with addressing the underlying issues of substance abuse, mental illness and/or trauma.

Video: Fresno's Human Trafficking Court Project

Collaborative Courts

Fresno

Adding DUI Court to the list allows us to reach more people and potentially save lives.

Feature - February 24, 2020

Innovation in a Click (or Tap)

Court of Appeal in Fresno spearheads projects to modernize and expand access to justice for Californians appealing their cases.

Court Innovation Grant

Fifth Appellate District

Technology

Ming Chin

News Release - January 17, 2020

Report Finding: Collaborative Court and Pretrial Programs Work

At its January 17 meeting, the council received a final report on a three-year grant supporting 39 collaborative court and pretrial programs that tracked retention, recidivism, and failure to appear rates for participating defendants.

Judicial Council

Meeting information

Judicial Council

Criminal Justice Reform

Innovations

Council members receive the final report on the Recidivism Reduction Grant Program, a three-year grant supporting and evaluating 39 collaborative court and pretrial programs.

News Release - October 21, 2019

Court of Appeal Invites Fresno Students to Oral Argument Session

Hundreds of Fresno high school students will attend an outreach event held by the Court of Appeal, Fifth Appellate District, who will hear oral argument in two cases.

Fifth Appellate District

Fresno

Civics

Feature - October 10, 2019

Judicial Council Presents 2019 Awards of Distinction and Service

The Judicial Council presented the 2019 Distinguished Service Awards on Nov 14 in San Francisco. The prestigious Aranda Access to Justice Award was also presented in partnership with the California Lawyers Association and the California Judges Association.

Distinguished Service Awards

Aranda Access to Justice Award

Judge Chittick's Veterans Treatment Court

Feature - October 4, 2019

Restorative Justice Programs Offer Veterans a New Mission

Veterans surrender to a personal mission thanks to a growing number of Veterans Courts.

Council Approves $23.5 Million in Grant Funding for Court Innovations

Court Innovation Grant

San Luis Obispo County Judge John Trice, who retired in 2017, calls establishing a local Veterans Treatment Court one of his greatest achievements.

Feature - September 30, 2019

In this Fresno Courtroom, A Safe Haven

Seeded with more than $500,000 in grant money from the Judicial Council, the Fresno court is one of 50 programs funded through the Court Innovations Grant Program.

To break the cycle of children sold for sex, the legal system is trying somethi…

Fresno

Court Innovation Grant

Feature - June 28, 2019

5 Things to Know about the Judicial Branch Budget

Governor Gavin Newsom signed his first state budget on Thursday, which includes nearly $470 million in new judicial branch funding to continue the courts’ steady recovery after years of deep cuts.

Chief Justice Releases Statement on Judicial Branch Budget for 2019-20