Civil
Civil Division
Civil cases involve a lawsuit in which one party sues another to:
• Recover money or property.
• To enforce a contract.
• To collect damages for injury.
• To protect some civil right.
- 1/12/2021 - Standing Order Re: Small Claims Trials
- 12/31/2020 - Notice from the Clerk of the Court re: Change in Location for filing of Petitions for Name and Gender Change Effective Jan 1, 2021
- 10/7/2020 - Clerk's Notice Re Unlawful Detainer Filings
- Notice Of Reassignment To All Parties For Matters In Courtroom 19
- Notice of Civil Fee Changes Effective 1/1/20
- Notice Regarding Court Reporter Fees
- Notice Regarding Ex Parte Review Days
Civil Calendar Information
Click here for Civil calendar information
Calendar dates, other than settlement conference and trial dates, will be obtained by filing the moving papers. Settlement conference dates are assigned when cases are set for trial.
Civil Trial Procedure
New Procedure Re: Filing of Civil Trial Documents – Effective 5/1/17
Effective May 1, 2017, Pre-trial documents shall be filed over the counter in the Civil Clerk’s Office. Courtesy copies shall be delivered to the chambers area for the assigned courtroom.
Initial Trial Filings will continue to be filed on the sixth court day preceding trial – in the Clerk’s Office
Reply Filings will continue to be filed on the third court day preceding trial – in the Clerk’s Office
Future Trial Orders of the Court sent with Trial Notices shall reflect this new change. The Court’s Local Rules will be changed later in 2018 to reflect the new process.
Civil Ex Parte Matters
All civil ex parte applications are reviewed in the assigned department as indicated on the calendars - View Civil Division Calendar Assignments
Unlawful Detainer Ex Parte matters are reviewed Monday through Friday. Documents are to be submitted through eFile if submitted by an attorney or if submitted by a party without an attorney at the Main Courthouse at 600 Administration Drive, Room 107-J, Santa Rosa, California no later than 8:30 am. Documents will be returned via eFile or will be ready for pick-up after 2:30 pm at Room 107J. Documents submitted after 8:30 am will be ready for pick-up the following court day after 2:30 pm at Room 107-J. This is for emergency orders only. Routine matters will not be addressed.
CHANGE TO CIVIL EX PARTE REVIEW PROCEDURE
Effective immediately and until further notice, Ex Parte Applications in civil actions assigned to Courtrooms 16, 17, 18 and 19 shall be presented by eFile if submitted by an attorney or if submitted by a party without an attorney to the Civil Clerk's Office located at 600 Administration Drive, Room 107-J, no later than 10:30 a.m. on the assigned judge's ex parte review day.
The Civil Judges review Ex Partes for matters assigned to their courtrooms on the following days:
- Monday: Courtroom 19, Judge Pardo
- Tuesday: Courtroom 17, Judge DeMeo
- Wednesday: Courtroom 16, Judge Broderick
- Thursday: Courtroom 18, Judge Honigsberg
The Ex Parte fee of $60 and any first appearance or other fees due shall be included at the time of submission of the Ex Parte application and all Ex Parte paperwork must comply with California Rules of Court, rules 3,1200-3.1207.
Courtesy copies of any Ex Parte paperwork will not be accepted at any court facility by email or by fax.
Copies of Orders following Ex Parte review will be returned by eFile, by email, or by fax after 2:30 p.m. on the same day. It is the responsibility of the applicant to serve a copy of the Order on the Ex Parte Application on all parties once the Judge has ruled.
Submitting a proposed order in word processing format under Ca. Rules of Court. rule 3.1312(c)(2) and Local Rule 18.26
When required, proposed orders in word processing format should be emailed directly to the department using the following email format: EFileProposedOrderDept#@sonomacourt.org -replace the # sign with the Department's number. Please note the case number in the subject line of your email. If successful, you will receive an email confirming receipt. Note that this email is only for proposed orders in word processing format pursuant to Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1312(c)(2) and Local Rule 17.26. All other emails sent to these addresses will not be read and will be deleted.
Civil Programs
Discovery and Demurrer Facilitator Programs
It shall be the policy of the Sonoma County Superior Court to encourage use of court managed programs to assist with any discovery dispute or any demurrer that is filed with respect to any pleading in a civil case.
In accordance with Local Rule 4.14 (E) and 4.17 (E) respectively, the moving party shall contact opposing party (ies) and make a reasonable and good faith attempt to informally select a discovery/demurrer facilitator from the list of potential discovery facilitators maintained by the Sonoma County Superior Court.
Click here for full list of potential facilitators for the above mentioned programs.
Civil Settlement Conference Program
The Sonoma County Superior Court has implemented a Mandatory Settlement Conference Program ("MSCP"), which relies on the voluntary assistance of the local bar. The court asks attorneys who have been in practice for at least 10 years to volunteer their time as panelists for the settlement conferences, typically 2 or 3 times a year.
If you are interested in being considered to sit as a Civil Mandatory Settlement Conference panelist, please complete the Application for Civil Mandatory Settlement Conference Panelist.
The ORIGINAL Civil Settlement Conference Statement shall be delivered directly to the panelist, no later than five (5) court days prior to the conference. Copies of Settlement Conference Statements will no longer be required. The Court will not provide the statements to the panelist(s). Failure to comply with this directive may result in monetary sanctions being imposed.
The parties shall notify the appropriate Settlement Conference Coordinator AND the panelist(s) of a pre-conference settlement. Failure to comply may result in monetary sanctions being imposed.
The court strongly encourages you to establish email contact with your assigned settlement conference panelist(s), for use in providing briefs, confirming attendance, and notification to panelists of pre-conference settlement, before panelists make an unnecessary appearance at court.
Sarah Lindo is the Coordinator for Settlement Conferences.
Tentative Rulings
For Civil Tentative Ruling Recordings:
- Law and Motion (707) 521-6606
Tentative rulings are available after 2:00 p.m. the day prior to scheduled hearing. - Case Management Calendar (707) 521-6606
Tentative rulings are available three court days prior to hearing. - OSC Calendar (707) 521-6606
Tentative rulings are available two court days prior to hearing. - Probate (707) 521-6607
Tentatives are available after 2:00 p.m. the day prior to scheduled hearing - Family Law - Law and Motion Tentative rulings (707) 521-6607
Tentative ruling are available after 2:00 p.m. the day prior to the scheduled hearing.
Civil Tentative Rulings are also available on this website
Public Access and Research Information
Access Information:
The Court does not provide case information via the Internet. On-site public access information terminals are available for researching cases at the Hall of Justice in Room 107J.
Copy Information:
- Cost for Copies: $0.50 per page
- Certification Fee: $40.00 per document in addition to the copy fee.
- Exemplification of Copy of Record: $50.00 in addition to the copying and comparing fee of $0.50 per page.
- Ten copies or less will be made while you wait. If you request more than 10 copies, you will be asked to complete a Copy Order form. Copies will be available for pick up 2 to 5 days later.
- Copies may be requested by mail. If you would like copies mailed to you, there is a minimum fee of $2.25 to cover postage and handling in addition to the copying fee of $0.50 per page.