Alameda County trial binder and trial document requirements

Petitioner must prepare a trial notebook that must be filed with the designated CEQA department 14 days before the date of the hearing or at the time the Reply Brief is filed, whichever is later. The trial notebook must consist of the petition, all answers, the briefs, any motions set to be heard at trial, the statement of issues, and any other documents agreed upon by the parties.

Title 3, Chapter 4, Other Special Civil Case Types, inside the CEQA block running from Rule 3.300 through Rule 3.380. Rule 3.380 has no lettered subdivisions, only two paragraphs. It does not reach ordinary civil cases. The anchor is the hearing date, which is the CEQA merits trial, but the offset is a whichever-is-later test, so on a compressed briefing schedule under Rule 3.340 the reply filing date controls and the notebook is due earlier than 14 days out is available. The statement of issues it must contain is governed by Rule 3.370: "The statement of issues must identify those portions of the administrative record that are directly related to the contentions and issues remaining in controversy." Rule 3.400, which would cover other administrative or ordinary mandamus petitions, is [Reserved], so no trial notebook is required for a non-CEQA writ. This is a filed document, so Rule 3.27(a) mandatory e-filing applies.

Petitioner must prepare two collections of the Administrative Record documents, in cooperation with the responding parties, for the use of the trial judge. The first collection shall contain each page of the Administrative Record cited in any of the parties' briefs including the page before and the page following the cited page in the Administrative Record. The second collection of Administrative Record documents shall include the entire document or the entire chapter of the document containing each page of the Administrative Record cited in any of the briefs. Both collections of Administrative Record documents must be housed in three-ring binders and delivered to the assigned CEQA department at the same time as the trial notebook.

This is the only three-ring binder requirement the Alameda local rules publish. The string "binder" appears exactly once in all eight titles, here. Same whichever-is-later timing as the trial notebook. The underlying record must already comply with Rule 3.330: volumes of not more than 300 pages separately bound, pages numbered consecutively, bound on the left margin, each cover the same size as its pages and labeled "Administrative Record," an index at the front of the first volume under Rule 3.330(b), and the eight-item organization in Rule 3.330(c). Rule 3.330(a) permits the record itself to be provided electronically ("Alternatively, it may be provided to the court in an electronic format that is both searchable and readable"), but the two trial-use collections are binder-only on the face of Rule 3.380.

With the exception of cases assigned to the Department 511 master calendar, and unless otherwise specified in these rules or modified by the judge to whom the case is assigned at the time of trial setting, the following standing orders will apply to: (1) All civil jury trials; and (2) With the exception of provisions for jury instructions and verdict forms, to all civil court trials.

Title 3, Chapter 1, Rules Applicable to All Civil Cases, so this is general civil and not a special case type. Rule 3.10 confirms the Local Civil Rules reach general civil, family, juvenile and probate cases. History line prints "Rule 3.35 amended effective July 1, 2018," so the text has been stable for eight years. The phrase "modified by the judge to whom the case is assigned at the time of trial setting" is the delegation that makes the department's own order controlling, and those orders are not publicly readable.

All civil cases assigned to the Department 511 master calendar should file and serve all trial documents on the first day of trial.

Rule 3.120 confirms Department 511 is the master calendar department, and the court's civil division page places it at the Hayward Hall of Justice for unlawful detainers. The rule says "should," not "must," and it is the only permissive verb in Rule 3.35. The rule does not say which documents.

The parties must meet and confer concerning the proposed use of any video or audio presentation and stipulate whenever possible to the use of the presentation. Objections to any audio or video presentation or transcripts must be raised in a motion in limine pursuant to subdivision (e).

Subdivision (d) is captioned Transcripts and sets no date of its own, which is why the offset is see_rule. It routes objections into the in limine deadline in (e)(2), three court days before the pretrial conference or trial, so the meet and confer has to happen before that.

If medical, personal, or consumer records are involved, the parties are to delete any information that counsel, or any self-represented party, agree should not come into evidence, including insurance information, so that such information is not received by the jury. The proponent must then prepare clean copies of the records for submission into evidence. Any disagreements or legal grounds for objection to the records must be set forth in a motion in limine filed pursuant to subdivision (e).

Subdivision (g) is captioned Redaction of exhibits and carries no date of its own. In practice the redaction work has to finish before the exhibit exchange in (b) and any dispute has to be teed up by the in limine deadline in (e)(2), both of which run three court days out.

Supplemental voir dire questions and any proposed written juror questionnaire must be personally served upon opposing counsel or any self-represented party three court days before the pretrial conference or the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled and submitted to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference if one is scheduled, or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled.

Subdivision (k) is captioned Jury selection. Same fallback ambiguity as (i) and (j). This party submission is separate from the court's own mandatory juror questionnaire under Local Rule 1.12(a), which every prospective juror completes for identification, qualification, ability to serve and assistance in voir dire, and which is not a party filing. No copy count is given.

If the case involves technical or unusual vocabulary, the parties must meet and confer on the contents of a glossary of terms to be included and their definitions. If the case involves technical or unusual vocabulary a special glossary must be prepared and must be submitted, in duplicate, to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference, or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled.

Construction defect, medical malpractice and patent trials will trip this. It is mandatory once the condition is met, the rule says "must," and the glossary is joint. Two copies. The rule sets no lead time for the meet and confer.

If ordered, counsel must submit to the court and all other parties, electronic copies of proposed juror questionnaires, jury instructions, and verdict forms in addition to printed versions required by this rule. Electronic copies must be in the format ordered by the court.

This governs the material handed to the courtroom clerk, which is paper by default and covers only these three documents. It does not reach filed documents. Motions in limine are filed under Rule 3.35(e)(2) and so are subject to mandatory e-filing under Rule 3.27(a). Nothing in the rule set authorizes an electronic trial binder in place of the paper submissions to the clerk.

In the discretion of the trial judge, the consequences of noncompliance with an order made under this rule may include imposition of any sanction or order authorized by law including, without limitation, restricting evidence, continuing the trial, sending the case back for further case management, reopening discovery, excluding an exhibit, precluding the testimony of a witness, striking an instruction, striking a motion in limine, or imposing sanctions.

Note the phrasing. Consequences attach to noncompliance "with an order made under this rule," which reads as contemplating that the department will issue its own trial-setting order incorporating or modifying Rule 3.35. Two general backstops sit outside Rule 3.35. Rule 3.90 lets the court strike pleadings, dismiss, enter default, impose lesser penalties and award expenses including attorney fees, subject to "No penalty may be imposed against a party or counsel without notice and an opportunity to be heard." Rule 1.13 provides that failure to comply with the local rules is punishable by contempt or other sanctions.

A list of all witnesses, including both expert and non-expert witnesses, to be called at trial, other than those to be called solely for impeachment or in rebuttal, must be personally served upon opposing counsel, or any self-represented party, three court days before the pretrial conference or three court days before trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled and presented in triplicate to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled.

Personal service, not electronic service, in a court that otherwise mandates electronic service under Local Rule 3.27(a). That is the trap. Note the word solely: a witness who will also testify in the case in chief is not excepted. Triplicate for the clerk. The rule requires no time estimates, no summary of expected testimony, and no joint list.

Each counsel, and any self-represented party, must prepare an index of all exhibits to be offered at trial, other than those to be used for impeachment or rebuttal, for submission with one extra copy to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled. The index must identify as separate exhibits each discrete document or item to be offered at trial and the index must include a brief description of each exhibit sufficient to distinguish it from the other exhibits. These indices and copies of the exhibits must be exchanged by counsel, and any self-represented party, at least three court days before the pretrial conference or three court days before trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled. The parties must meet and confer to eliminate duplicate exhibits and stipulate whenever possible to authenticity and admissibility.

Anchor is court_order because the Alameda pretrial conference is set by the assigned department and no rule fixes its date relative to trial. If no pretrial conference is scheduled, the same three-court-day clock runs off the trial date and the physical submission happens on the first day of trial. "With one extra copy" is ambiguous on its face about whether the extra copy is of the index or of the exhibits, and the sentence structure points to the index. No rule requires exhibits to be tabbed, bound, indexed to a binder, or delivered anywhere other than to the courtroom clerk.

Failure to disclose or exchange a copy of any exhibit may result in its exclusion at trial. All objections to an exhibit must be in the form of a motion in limine pursuant to paragraph (e). Failure to file and serve a motion in limine objecting to an exhibit may waive all objections to that exhibit at trial.

This provision sets no deadline of its own, which is why the offset is see_rule. It is the one most likely to cost a case something. Exhibits are exchanged on a three-court-day clock under this same subdivision and in limine motions are due on the same three-court-day clock under (e)(2), so counsel receives the other side's exhibits the same day the objection is due. Exchange earlier than the rule requires.

All exhibits and other materials offered in evidence or otherwise presented at civil trials, including transcripts of depositions and administrative records, will be returned at the conclusion of trial to the custody of the offering party. The custodial party must maintain all exhibits and other materials in the same condition as received from the clerk until 60 days after a final judgment or dismissal of the entire case is entered.

Title 3, Chapter 1, so this is general civil and applies to every civil trial in the county, Department 511 cases included. It is the back half of the exhibit story and belongs next to Rule 3.35(b). The 60-day retention duty runs from entry of final judgment or dismissal of the entire case, not from the verdict. Rule 3.97(b) adds that at the conclusion of trial, before the materials go back, any party may request certified copies of exhibits from the clerk at the requesting party's expense.

Each counsel, and any self-represented party, must personally serve upon opposing counsel, or any self-represented party, three court days before the pretrial conference or the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled and submit a set of proposed jury instructions to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled. The submission of a list of jury instructions, without the proposed instructions, does not comply with this requirement. The full text of the proposed instructions must be provided including proposed language to complete any blank portions of such instructions and proposed formatting to include or exclude bracketed language in such instructions. Any proposed instruction that is not taken verbatim from jury instructions approved by the Judicial Council of California must include citations to the authorities upon which it is based.

Read the fallback carefully. This subdivision does not repeat "three court days before trial" the way (b), (c)(2), (e)(2) and (f) do. It says "three court days before the pretrial conference or the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled," which can be read either as three court days before the first day of trial or as service on the first day of trial. The parallel structure of the rule supports the first reading, but the text does not settle it, so confirm with the department. Personal service is required. Per Rule 3.35(a)(2) this subdivision does not apply to a court trial. Instructions are submitted per party, nothing requires a joint set or a statement of disputed instructions, and no copy count is given.

At least three court days before the pretrial conference or the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled, each counsel, and any self-represented party, must meet and confer for the purpose of agreeing upon a form of verdict or special verdict and submit the agreed upon or proposed verdict form, if no agreement has been reached, to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled.

Same fallback ambiguity as (i) and (k), and the same fix: confirm with the department whether the three court days run off the first day of trial when no pretrial conference is set. Unlike jury instructions, the verdict form starts as a joint obligation and only splits into competing forms if the meet and confer fails. Per Rule 3.35(a)(2) this subdivision does not apply to a court trial. No copy count is given.

Each counsel, and any self-represented party, must, in advance of the pretrial conference or the first day of trial if no pretrial conference is scheduled, meet and confer for the purpose of agreeing upon a brief non-argumentative summary of the factual nature of the case and a brief statement regarding any alleged injuries and damages for submission to the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled.

A joint agreed statement, not a per-party one, and the rule sets no numeric lead time for the meet and confer, only "in advance." The hyphen in non-argumentative renders as a soft hyphen in the PDF. No local form exists for it, and no copy count is given.

Originals of all depositions to be used at trial must be lodged with the courtroom clerk at the pretrial conference or on the first day of trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled. Counsel, and any self-represented party, must meet and confer to edit depositions as necessary and make a good faith effort to resolve admissibility issues related to depositions.

Originals, not copies, and lodged rather than filed. In a construction defect case with twenty depositions this is a logistics item to calendar well ahead of the conference, since the originals sit with the reporting service.

If depositions, requests for admissions, interrogatory responses, or any other discovery responses, are to be used in lieu of live testimony at trial, the proponent must submit the excerpts to be used to opposing counsel, or any self-represented party, at least three court days before the pretrial conference, or three court days before trial if a pretrial conference is not scheduled. The parties must meet and confer on the admissibility of depositions, requests for admissions, interrogatory responses, or other discovery responses and whenever possible to authenticity and admissibility. Legal grounds for objections to such excerpts must be raised by motion in limine pursuant to subdivision (e).

The excerpts go to opposing counsel. The rule says nothing about lodging a designation chart with the court, sets no counter-designation procedure, and imposes no page-and-line format. Alameda does not use the designation and counter-designation structure some counties do.

Unless otherwise ordered by the trial judge, all motions in limine subject to this rule must be in writing, numbered consecutively, and filed in the clerk's office at least three court days before the pretrial conference or, if there is no pretrial conference, three court days before trial. Motions in limine addressing separate evidence or issues shall not be aggregated into one motion. Reservation numbers are not required for motions in limine subject to this rule.

Three court days is short by California standards and is the single most important number on this page. The no-aggregation rule means a party with eight evidentiary issues files eight motions. The no-reservation-number sentence is a real carve-out from Local Rule 3.30(b), which otherwise requires a portal reservation for every demurrer, motion or order to show cause. These motions are filed, so Rule 3.27(a) mandatory e-filing applies to them.

This rule does not apply to motions in limine in unlawful detainer, probate, family, and juvenile cases.

Worth flagging because Local Rule 3.10 makes the Local Civil Rules apply to family, juvenile and probate cases as well as general civil, and this subdivision is the carve-back. It does not affect an ordinary unlimited civil case.

Unless otherwise ordered by the trial judge, all motions in limine subject to this rule will be set for hearing. The trial judge shall determine the hearing date and time and how service of the motion is to be made. The timing and service requirements of the opposition and reply, if any, shall be at the discretion of the trial judge.

There is no county default for an in limine opposition or reply deadline and no default for the manner of service. Ask the department.

Unless otherwise ordered by the trial judge, courtesy copies of any moving papers filed under this rule, as well as any opposition and reply papers, shall be delivered to the trial department on the date of filing.

Same day, not the next court day. Local Rule 3.30(c) says the same thing from the other direction: "For in limine motions or matters on which the hearing will be two court days or fewer from filing, the courtesy copies shall be delivered the same day as filing," against that rule's ordinary standard of "by noon the court day after the paper is filed, lodged or otherwise submitted." Rule 3.27(c) adds that a courtesy copy otherwise due on a non-court day is due the next court day.

A final case management conference will be held 14 days before trial unless otherwise ordered by the court.

This is the only conference in the entire Alameda local rule set fixed relative to trial, and it applies only to asbestos and silica cases. Rule 3.290 sits in Title 3, Chapter 3, Complex, Asbestos, and Silica Cases, and is captioned "Case management for asbestos and silica cases." Rule 3.20(c) supplies the designation. Do not read it across to general civil, and do not read it across to complex cases either, since the rule is by its caption asbestos and silica only. Listed here because it is easy to mistake for a countywide trial readiness conference.

Subject to the exceptions below, all non-criminal trials and evidentiary hearings other than small claims and civil harassment hearings will be conducted remotely unless (i) the court orders otherwise, or (ii) a party makes a showing as to why the trial or hearing should not be conducted remotely by emailing said showing to the assigned department and to all parties and others entitled to notice no later than five court days before the hearing.

Title 1, and Rule 1.90(a) says "This rule applies to all civil matters other than family law matters." Rule 1.90(b)(1)(C) lists jury trials and court trials among the evidentiary hearings to be conducted remotely. This reshapes what a trial binder means here, since the default presentation is remote while the Rule 3.35 submissions to the courtroom clerk are paper. Rule 1.90 was adopted February 8, 2021 and last amended April 30, 2022, so it is a pandemic-era rule still on the books in the July 1, 2026 edition. On the pretrial conference itself, Rule 1.90(b)(2)(A) makes non-evidentiary hearings, which it defines to include settlement conferences and pretrial conferences, in person by default, then adds: "Notwithstanding the foregoing, parties may appear remotely at non-evidentiary hearings as provided in Code of Civil Procedure section 367.75." So in person is the default, not a requirement.

Any party who intends to appear in person at any hearing must inform all parties and others entitled to notice and must email the assigned department no later than the pretrial conference, if any, or, if there is no pretrial conference, no later than five court days before the hearing.

Split out from the Rule 1.90(b)(1)(B) row because it carries a different anchor and a different deadline, and merging the two is how counsel misses one of them. Where a pretrial conference is set, this notice is due no later than that conference, which is an at_event deadline off a court-set date. Where there is none, it runs five court days before the hearing. Note the mirror provision in Rule 1.90(b)(2)(B): a request or agreement to appear remotely may be emailed to the assigned department no later than five court days before the hearing, or made orally at any hearing.