Riverside County trial binder and trial document requirements

The Court shall conduct a Trial Readiness Conference ("TRC") on ________________, 202___, at 10:00 A.M. [_______________] in Department 1.

A TRC is optional in Department 1 and is not set in every case, which is why the same order carries "if no TRC has been set" fallbacks throughout. Department 7 also runs a TRC in civil cases, evidenced by its rules block headed "COURT ORDERS RE: MOTIONS IN LIMINE (PROVIDED AT TRC DATE)," though Department 7 publishes no interval either. No numbered Riverside civil local rule creates a TRC. See notPublished.

Not less than seven days before the date set for trial, or by such other time agreed upon by counsel, lead trial counsel for all parties shall meet (either in person or by telephone) and conduct an Issues Conference. Counsel for the plaintiff shall be responsible for arranging the conference at a mutually agreeable time and place.

The eight agenda items are Rule 3401(3)(a) through (h): each witness, each exhibit, each uncontroverted fact or issue of law, each motion in limine, whether to exchange electronic copies of briefing and exhibits in a standardized format, and in a jury trial the mini openings or joint statement of the case, the instructions and the verdict form. Departments 1 and 5 both put the arranging duty jointly on counsel for plaintiff, any cross-complainant and any plaintiff in intervention.

In addition to the requirements prescribed in California Rule of Court 3.1380(c), mandatory settlement conference statements shall be no more than 10 pages in length. B. The court may permit the filing of a statement that exceeds (10) pages in length upon a showing of good cause.

The page cap is the only thing the local rule sets. The lodging deadline comes from CRC 3.1380(c), five court days before the conference, not from a Riverside rule. I read Rules 3200, 3218, 3220, 3225, 3227, 3228, 3230, 3273, 3275 and 3290 and none sets an MSC relative to the trial date. Current practice, from the court's Mandatory Settlement Conferences information sheet effective July 31, 2023: "MSC's are set in Department-Room 3540 and held virtually via Zoom for Government," before three named retired judges, with statements emailed as a PDF attachment to MSCRIV@riverside.courts.ca.gov. The 2020 Pretrial Procedures guide's statement that MSCs sit in Department 12 and Department S205 predates that sheet. The guide also says as practice, not rule, that "MSCs are usually set about 30 days prior to the trial date" and that the court "lacks the resources to conduct a MSC in every case."

Exhibits must be numbered in advance. Each exhibit shall bear a separate exhibit number (i.e., avoid marking exhibits "3a, 3b, 3c..."). b) Unless there are less than 10 exhibits, all documentary exhibits and photographs (8 1/2" x 12" or smaller) should be placed in a loose-leaf notebook with numbered dividers corresponding to the exhibit number. c) For ease of reference during testimony, each page of each exhibit shall bear a unique and consecutive page number. d) Counsel are encouraged to exchange their exhibits electronically in a standardized format.

Transcription note: the rule prints the size with a single fraction character and curly inch marks, and it reads 12 inches, not 11. The same 12 appears in the Departments 2, 3 and 10 republication. Two administrative typo corrections appear in the rule's history (3-25-15 and 6-5-20) without changing it. This is the only notebook provision in the numbered civil rules and it covers exhibits, not the trial documents. Departments harden it: Department 5 makes it mandatory and caps the spine at three inches, PS1 requires three hard copy sets on 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper in three-ring binders plus a mirror image flash drive, PS4 requires five tabbed binders.

1 Operative Pleadings 2 Joint Pretrial Statement 3 Trial Briefs 4 Joint Witness List 5 Joint Exhibit List 6 Request(s) for Judicial Notice 7 *Joint Statement of the Case 8 *Jury Instructions (Joint/Plaintiff's/Defendant's) 9 *Verdict Form(s)

Tab 10 reads "*Motions in Limine (MILs) (Joint Index/Joint Proposed Order/Plaintiff's 4 MILs/Defendant's 4 MILs) *Separate Binder with Additional MILs." The four per side is the booklet's sample layout, not a stated threshold; the tab 10 page says only "*Repeat if more than one MIL." The star is defined at the foot of the index: "*Additional documents required for jury trials." Sub-tabs: tab 1 Complaint, Answer(s), Cross-Complaint(s), Answer(s); tab 3 Plaintiff, Defendant(s); tab 8 Joint, Plaintiffs, Defense; tab 10 a motion tab and an opposition tab for each motion, all of plaintiff's in numeric order ahead of all of defendant's. The booklet prints no adoption date and no effective date. The word "binder" appears nowhere in the entire Complete Set of Local Rules, so the booklet is the only Riverside trial binder specification. PS1 says parties "may, but need not, use" it. PS2 directs counsel to it by URL. Matching Avery 5351 horizontal tabs and an Avery 11436 index divider template are posted alongside it.

Exhibits not included in the joint binder, with the exception of those offered solely for impeachment, will be excluded from evidence.

Three sets, one for the court, one for the courtroom assistant, one for the witness. Impeachment exhibits are labeled, numbered, bates stamped and tabbed like the rest and delivered in three copies in a labeled envelope, package or binder, not shared in advance. "DO NOT save all exhibits in a single PDF file." Drop off is arranged with the courtroom assistant in advance.

Parties are to deliver to Department PS2 1 tabbed binder containing all joint documents above prior to the matter being called on the date of hearing. Trial documents are not to be filed separately.

Last Modified 2/14/2025. PS2's document list tracks Rule 3401(9)(b) and adds, at item 10, an index table with the jury instructions and a requirement that any dispute in instruction content be outlined for the court specifying both sides' proposed language and authority. Compliance gate at section J: "Voir dire will not begin until all parties have complied with Local Rule 3401. Parties will be sanctioned for each day of non compliance."

Unless the judge to whom a case is assigned for all purposes orders otherwise, this rule applies to all civil trials, except for (i) non-jury unlawful detainer trials and (ii) non-jury trials estimated to take no more than five hours.

Rule 3401(1)(b): "In non-jury trials estimated to take five hours or less, compliance is encouraged but not mandated." Rule 3401(1)(c): "References to 'counsel' also include self-represented parties." Verified against the standalone Title 3 PDF and the Complete Set of Local Rules effective July 1, 2026.

Not later than 14 days before the date set for trial, or by such other time agreed upon by counsel, counsel for all parties shall exchange each of the following:

The eight items are subdivisions (2)(a) through (2)(h), broken out below. Nothing is filed at this stage. Department 5, M301 and M302 all restate the 14 day exhibit exchange in their own rules.

A list of facts or issues of law that the party believes are not controverted and to which the party is willing to agree.

This feeds the stipulation in the Joint Pretrial Statement under Rule 3401(4)(b)(ii).

If a plaintiff, a description of each claim in support of which the party intends to offer evidence at trial and of the relief being sought as to each claim, including the nature of each element of damages for which recovery is sought and the amount of each element of economic damages. If a defendant, a description of each affirmative defense in support of which the party intends to offer evidence at trial.

Highest stakes item in the exchange. Rule 3401(4)(b)(iii) attaches preclusion: "Except for good cause, no party will be allowed to introduce evidence to support any claim, any element of damage, or any affirmative defense that is not listed on that statement." Departments 1 and 5 add that the only defenses a defendant may list are affirmative defenses on which it bears the burden of proof, citing Harris v. City of Santa Monica (2013) 56 Cal.4th 203, 239.

Following the Issues Conference, counsel shall prepare a Joint Pretrial Statement and the additional documents specified below. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the documents shall be prepared by counsel for the plaintiff. All shall be signed by lead trial counsel for each party.

No separate preparation deadline is stated. The operative date is the filing or delivery date, which is the first day of trial under Rule 3401(9)(a) and is earlier in most posted departments. Department 5 adds: "No document shall be labeled 'joint' unless it is signed by counsel for all parties."

The Joint Pretrial Statement shall be contained in a single document with a single caption and a single set of signatures. The statement shall include the following: i) A joint statement of parties and counsel, listing the full name of each party still in the action and the name of the attorney, if any, who will represent that party at trial. ii) A stipulation reciting the precise facts or legal issues to which the parties agree.

(4)(b)(ii) continues: "If the parties have resolved any potential motions in limine, the stipulation should recite those resolutions." (4)(b)(iii) carries the preclusion sanction quoted in the claims row. (4)(b)(iv) requires a joint statement of the case in a jury trial unless all parties will open voir dire with brief opening statements under CCP 222.5(d), and where counsel cannot agree, a joint version to the extent of agreement plus the separate competing proposals.

If counsel for any party fails to participate in the Issues Conference, or otherwise fails to cooperate in the preparation of the documents specified above, then counsel for the remaining party or parties shall prepare and sign proposed versions of those documents. In that event, the Proposed Joint Pretrial Statement shall include a declaration describing the attempts made by the remaining party or parties to confer with or obtain the cooperation of the non-complying party.

This is why Rule 3401(9)(b) lists each document in the alternative, "Joint Pretrial Statement, or Proposed Joint Pretrial Statement." Document the meet and confer attempts as they happen. The declaration is the only route to filing a one-sided set.

No trial document shall be filed prior to the trial date. Instead, all trial documents shall be filed on the first day of trial in the department to which the case has been assigned for trial. b) In addition to the copies provided to opposing counsel and any copies to be conformed, counsel shall provide the original and one copy of each of the following trial documents to the Court: i) Joint Pretrial Statement, or Proposed Joint Pretrial Statement. ii) Joint Witness List, or Proposed Joint Witness List. iii) Joint Exhibit List, or Proposed Joint Exhibit List. iv) Exhibits. v) Requests for judicial notice (if any). vi) Motions in limine (if any), and proposed order. vii) Oppositions to motions in limine (if any). viii) Trial brief (if any). ix) Stipulation of facts or issues of law (if any). x) In a jury trial, jury instructions and verdict form.

This is the single most overridden provision in the rule. Read the assigned department's posted order first, every time. The department rows below give the current posted deadlines.

In the event that the trial is continued after the Issues Conference has been conducted and the trial documents have been prepared, counsel need not conduct a further Issues Conference or revise any of the trial documents unless there has been a material change. In the event that counsel for any party believes that any trial document needs to be changed or supplemented, that counsel shall meet and confer with all other counsel.

Useful in a long cause case that trails or is continued. The work is not repeated on the new trial date absent a material change.

Parties or their counsel who fail to comply with any portion of this rule without good cause are subject to sanctions, including but not limited to orders striking all or part of that party's pleading, dismissing all or part of that party's action, entering a judgment by default against that party, postponing the trial, or imposing monetary, evidentiary, or issue sanctions. Code Civ. Proc., section 575.2.

The three preclusion provisions in Rule 3401(4)(b)(iii), (4)(c)(i) and (4)(c)(ii) bite harder, because they reach the case in chief and nobody has to move for them. Department teeth are in the rows below. PS2, PS4 and M301 all direct counsel to Reales Investment, LLC v. Johnson (2020) 55 Cal.App.5th 463 on the consequences of noncompliance.

Contrary to subdivision 9.a. of RSC Local Rule 3401, all documents required by subdivision 9 of that rule to be filed on the date of trial, including all exhibits, shall instead be delivered directly to the clerk of this department no later than three court days before the Trial Date.

Last Modified October 2, 2025, signed by Judge Sophia Choi, referencing the local rules effective July 1, 2025. Section C.4: "All documents required by RSC Local Rule 3401 to be provided to opposing counsel on the day of trial shall instead be delivered directly to opposing counsel no later than three court days before the date the Trial Date." (sic). Section C.1.f makes the exhibit notebook mandatory and caps it: "If there are 10 or more exhibits, all documentary and photographic exhibits shall be placed in a loose-leaf notebook with numbered dividers corresponding to the exhibit number. The spine of the notebook binder shall not exceed three inches in width." Conflict clause at section G.2, both sentences: "To the extent this Trial Setting Order conflicts with Local Rule 3401, this Trial Setting Order applies. This refers to Section D, 2 and 4, of this Trial Setting Order." The override provisions are actually in Section C, paragraphs 2 and 4, so the order's own cross reference appears to be off by one letter. This is a sample form; the operative dates are filled in case by case.

All parties must comply with Local Rule 3401 and Reales Investment, LLC v. Johnson (2020) 55 Cal.App.5th 463. The following documents are due by 9:30 a.m. on the date set for trial:

Offset token: first_day_9_30am means 9:30 a.m. on the first day of trial. The listed documents are Joint Statement of the Case, Joint Exhibit List (with stipulations noted, exhibits exchanged 14 days before trial, impeachment excluded), Joint Witness List (with time estimates for direct, cross and redirect), Jury Instructions (Joint; Plaintiff's; Defendant's), Joint Verdict Form(s), and "Motions in Limine Binder (with oppositions)." Sanction: "Failure to comply delays voir dire and may incur $250 per missing document per day." Section IX.8: "A copy of an Exhibits binder shall be provided for the witness stand." Last Modified October 2, 2025. This 9:30 a.m. trial date deadline and the trial setting order's three court day deadline are both posted and both current. Calendar the earlier one.

Contrary to subdivision 9.a. of RSC Local Rule 3401, all documents required by subdivision 9 of that rule to be filed on the date of trial, including all exhibits, shall instead be delivered directly to the clerk of this department no later than 48 hours before the day and time on which the trial is scheduled to begin. If a Trial Readiness Conference (TRC) has been set, those documents shall be delivered no later than 48 hours before the TRC is scheduled to begin.

Offset token: -48_hours means 48 hours before the anchor event. Anchor is the TRC when one is set and otherwise the trial date. Section D.4: "All documents required by RSC Local Rule 3401to be provided to opposing counsel on the day of trial shall instead be delivered directly to opposing counsel no later than 48 hours before the day and time that the TRC (or, if no TRC has been set, the trial) is scheduled to begin." (the run together "3401to" is in the original). If the clerk's office is closed the documents go in the "trial documents" drop box at the Historic Courthouse. Dated 2021 on its face, marked v. 36, signed by Judge Craig G. Riemer. Caution: the court posts a second Department 1 trial setting order under the general Trials heading, dated February 2020, which sets no TRC and keeps the trial date delivery ("The parties shall bring all documents required by section 9.b. of RSC Local Rule 3401 to Department 1."). Confirm which order was entered in your case.

The parties are ordered to file/submit these joint documents to the court by 4:00 p.m. 7 days prior to the date of trial.

The joint documents PS1 lists include a joint timeline chart with time estimates in hours for openings, closings and each examination, and a witness list carrying contact information and time estimates. Courtesy copy goes to DeptPS1@riverside.courts.ca.gov. On the booklet: "NOTE: The parties may, but need not, use the Local Rule 3401 Binder Guidelines when preparing joint documents and, if applicable, motions in limine for submission to the Court." Automatic OSC for late filing: "Failure to file/submit joint documents and courtesy copies to the Court one week prior to the date of trial will result in an Order to Show Cause being automatically set for the date of trial as to why parties and counsel should not be sanctioned in an amount of up to $1500 for failing to comply with Local Rule 3401 and PS1 Trial Rules."

On or before 4:00 p.m. the 5th calendar day before trial, lead trial counsel for each party (or all lead counsel for all parties jointly) shall file with the court and serve a declaration under penalty of perjury stating:

The declaration states that the exchange and joint document requirements were completed in good faith, that witnesses were advised of video trial requirements where applicable, and all agreed and unresolved issues including authenticity, admissibility and anticipated testimony. A missing declaration draws the same automatic $1,500 OSC on the trial date. Trial brief rule: "All trial briefs must be filed and served on or before the date the pre-trial good faith declaration is filed and served. The brief must not exceed 20 pages, inclusive of attachments."

All trial documents must be filed by 8:30 a.m. the Monday before trial. At the same time these documents are filed the parties are to deliver five tabbed binders containing their exhibits to Department PS4.

Offset token: monday_before_trial_8_30am means 8:30 a.m. on the Monday preceding the trial date. Last modified 6/26/2026, Judge Michael C. Martin. PS4 also sets exhibit ranges (plaintiff 1-100, defendant 101-200), caps trial briefs at 20 pages inclusive of attachments, moves deposition lodging to the same Monday deadline, excuses impeachment exhibits from the binders but requires them delivered no later than the trial date, and requires a disclosure whenever artificial intelligence was used in preparing any paper filed with the court, citing Noland v. Land of the Free, L.P. (2025) 114 Cal.App.5th 426.

The following documents are due by 8:30 a.m. on the date set for trial:

Offset token: first_day_8_30am means 8:30 a.m. on the first day of trial. Last Modified 04/28/2026, Judge Stephen Gallon. The list is Joint Statement of the Case, Joint Exhibit List (exhibits exchanged 14 days before trial, impeachment excluded), Joint Witness List (with time estimates), Jury Instructions (Joint; Plaintiff's; Defendant's), Joint Verdict Form(s), and Motions in Limine Binder (with oppositions). Sanction: "Failure to comply delays voir dire and incurs $250 per missing document per day." M301 also requires a trial estimate in days at the trial setting conference and holds parties to it.

The following documents are due by 9:30 a.m. on the date set for trial:

Last Modified 8/27/2025, Judge Raquel A. Marquez. Identical list to M301 including "Motions in Limine Binder (with oppositions)," and the same sanction: "Failure to comply delays voir dire and incurs $250 per missing document per day." Departments 5, M301 and M302 share this format, so the Motions in Limine Binder is a recurring Riverside department requirement that no numbered local rule contains.

Parties are required to have trial related documents pursuant to Local Rule 3401 in a hard copy and in a digital format when it is submitted.

Rev. 2/2/26, Judge O.G. Magno. Compliance gate at section D.1: "Voir Dire shall not begin until all parties have complied with Local Rule 3401, and, in particular, provided the Court with required jury instructions and verdict forms." Department 7 also publishes a motions in limine order block headed "COURT ORDERS RE: MOTIONS IN LIMINE (PROVIDED AT TRC DATE)," which shows it runs a trial readiness conference, and it requires an indication of a meet and confer before it will consider any motion in limine.

Parties shall bring all trial related documents prepared pursuant to Local Rule 3401 to the Friday Trial call.

Judge Daniel A. Ottolia. Compliance gate at section III.1, in the same words Department 7 uses: "Voir Dire shall not begin until all parties have complied with Local Rule 3401, and, in particular, provided the Court with required jury instructions and verdict forms." Department 4 makes no change to the Rule 3401(9)(a) filing rule.

Unless the judge to whom a case is assigned for all purposes orders otherwise, this rule applies to all civil trials, except for (i) non-jury unlawful detainer trials and (ii) non-jury trials estimated to take no more than five hours.

The Department 2, Department 3 and Department 10 links resolve to the same republication text; the Dept 10 file (2024-04/rule3401_trialrules_10.pdf) extracts identically. Stale copy warning: this republication carries the older subdivision 9(c), "Any party who intends to read from a deposition transcript during trial shall lodge the original transcript with the court on the first day of trial," which the current Title 3 text supersedes. Use the Title 3 PDF for the rule text, not the department republication.

This document describes how your department is likely to conduct case management hearings and other pretrial proceedings, but each of the twelve trial departments has the discretion to adopt its own practices.

Revised February 20, 2020, v.23. The opening continues: "If there is any conflict between this document and procedures posted by the department to which your case is assigned, defer to those department-specific procedures." Section H, quoted exactly as printed including the section symbol: "Except for non-jury unlawful detainer trials and non-jury trials estimated to take five hours or less, all parties must comply with Riverside Superior Court Local Rule 3401, and must bring the documents specified in § 9.b. of that rule on the day of the trial call. There will be no other exceptions. Failure to comply with that rule may result in the continuance of the trial, in the imposition of the sanctions described in rule 3401, and/or in an OSC why monetary sanctions should not be imposed." Section H also states "All trials will be called on Fridays at 8:30 A.M." and that "If more than one trial is ready, any additional trials that are ready may be assigned to a trial department in Riverside, Palm Springs or Murrieta," so a case can land under a different department's order on the trial date. Some figures in this 2020 guide are superseded, including its MSC location.

A list of all witnesses the party intends to call to testify at trial, including the witness's name and a single-sentence description of the anticipated subjects on which the witness is expected to testify. In a jury trial, the list shall also identify (i) the community in which each non-expert witness resides and (ii) the occupation and area of the principal office of each expert witness.

Department add-ons the county rule does not require: Department 5 ("The witness list shall distinguish between retained experts and non-retained experts."), PS1 (time estimates in hours for direct, cross and redirect per witness, plus a phone number and email for each witness), PS2, M301 and M302 (time estimates on the joint witness list).

A joint witness list in the manner described in subdivision 2. Except for good cause, no party will be allowed to call any witness who is not on that list for any purpose other than impeachment of a witness.

Tab 4 of the Binder Guidelines booklet. Self-executing preclusion, no motion required.

A list of all exhibits that the party intends to introduce at trial, except those intended to be used solely to impeach a witness. The list shall include the exhibit number, a title or other brief description, and the number of pages in the exhibit. Except for exhibits to be used solely for impeachment of a witness, if any exhibit has not previously been exchanged in discovery, a copy of that exhibit shall also be exchanged.

Departments 1 and 5 both add required columns in identical words: exhibit number, description including page count, stipulation to authenticity, stipulation to admission, and blank columns for recording authentication and admission, with the description "sufficiently detailed to distinguish it from similar exhibits of the same character." PS4 assigns number ranges: "Plaintiff shall be assigned exhibit numbers 1-100. Defendant shall be assigned exhibit numbers 101-200."

A joint exhibit list in the manner described in subdivision 2. The exhibit list shall indicate whether the parties have stipulated to the admission or the authenticity of the exhibits. Except for good cause, no party will be allowed to introduce any exhibit that is not on that list for any purpose other than impeachment of a witness.

Tab 5 of the Binder Guidelines booklet. PS1 goes further and excludes from evidence any exhibit not in the joint exhibit binder lodged seven days before trial, impeachment exhibits excepted.

In a jury trial, a list of form jury instructions and the text of special jury instructions that the party proposes to use.

Form and editing requirements are in Rule 3401(8), separate row below.

In a jury trial, the form jury instructions and any special jury instructions on which all parties agree. If the parties do not all agree as to all instructions requested, counsel shall also prepare the form jury instructions and any special jury instructions on which all parties have not agreed. Each of the latter instructions shall identify the party or parties who are proposing or have agreed to that instruction.

Tab 8 of the Binder Guidelines booklet, with sub-tabs Joint, Plaintiffs, Defense. Note the tension with Department 1's editing rule at section E.2.e of its trial setting order, which says the requesting party must NOT appear on a form instruction. Read the two together: identify the proposing party on the disputed set, keep the party off the face of the form instruction itself.

The proposed jury instructions shall be fully edited and shall be in the form required by California Rule of Court, rule 2.1055, including the index prescribed by rule 2.1055(b). b) If there are CACI instructions applicable to the legal issues presented, the Court will use those CACI instructions unless the party proposing a different instruction demonstrates that the instruction proposed would more accurately state the law and be more clearly understood by the jurors. c) The instructions should be divided into two sets: those to which all parties agree, and those to which some party has an objection.

Subdivision 8 has three subdivisions and no more. Any citation to Rule 3401(8)(d) or (e) is wrong. The county rule does not define "fully edited." Department 1's Trial Setting Order does, at section E.2.a through g, and the same seven part definition is repeated in the Department 5 Rules and the Guidelines for Complex Litigation: fill every blank, correct gender and party number, delete inapplicable alternative language, remove brackets, strip the title and the requesting party from form instructions, order CACI 5000 to 5008 first and CACI 5009 et seq. last with the CACI 100 series text omitted, and give text, requesting party and supporting authority for each special instruction.

In a jury trial, a proposed verdict form.

Separate from Rule 3402, which governs when special verdict questions and forms are handed to the court at trial.

In a jury trial, an agreed-upon verdict form. If counsel are unable to agree on a joint proposal for the verdict form, then counsel shall include a joint proposed verdict form to the limited extent to which all counsel can agree, together with their separate proposals as to those aspects on which counsel cannot agree.

Tab 9 of the Binder Guidelines booklet. Rule 3402 separately governs special verdicts at trial.

When special verdicts are to be submitted to a jury, the jury questions and verdict forms shall be presented in writing to the Court, and copies thereof furnished to other parties before any evidence is offered, unless the Court shall order otherwise.

The only other rule in Title 3, Division 4. Despite the heading "Instructions to Jury," the text is about special verdicts. History: "(Adopted 1-1-86; Amended and moved from Title 1 (Rule 1.0055), 10-17-98, effective 1-1-99; Moved from Title 2 and renumbered from Rule 2.0070, 8-1-11, effective 1-1-12; amended and renumbered from Rule 3370, 10-15-13, effective 1-1-14)"

In a jury trial, a proposed statement of the case suitable for reading to the jury venire [unless the party intends to request to begin voir dire with a brief opening statement in accordance with Code of Civil Procedure section 222.5, subdivision (d)]. The statement of the case should be neutral and non-argumentative. It should include the basic uncontested facts and, to the extent necessary, the contentions of the parties. It should rarely exceed four or five simple sentences. It should use plain English, without legal or technical jargon.

Tab 7 in the court's Local Rule 3401 Binder Guidelines booklet, starred as a jury-trial-only document. Department 7 states a preference for reading the statement of the case rather than allowing mini openings.

Trial briefs concerning the legal issues presented by the trial are required in non-jury trials and encouraged in jury trials. However, submission of a trial brief does not excuse compliance with any provision of this rule.

Filed with everything else on the first day of trial under Rule 3401(9)(b)(viii) absent a department order. Two departments impose a 20 page cap: PS1 ("The brief must not exceed 20 pages, inclusive of attachments") and PS4 ("Trial briefs must not exceed 20 pages (inclusive of attachments)."). Tab 3 of the Binder Guidelines booklet, sub-tabs Plaintiff and Defendant(s).

Any party who intends to introduce deposition testimony during trial shall lodge either the original transcript or a certified copy with the court on the first day of trial.

Two departments move the lodging deadline and add a PDF requirement. PS1: "Deposition transcripts which may be read or referred to at trial must be lodged with the court by 4:00 p.m. 7 days prior to the date of trial." PS4: "Deposition transcripts that may be read or referred to at trial must be lodged with the court by 8:30 a.m. the Monday before trial starts." Both require original or certified transcripts absent agreement, and a PDF copy of any portion counsel intends to display. Stale copy warning: the Rule 3401 republication posted as the Departments 2, 3 and 10 trial rules carries the older wording, "Any party who intends to read from a deposition transcript during trial shall lodge the original transcript with the court on the first day of trial," which the current Title 3 text supersedes.

Any motions in limine that the party intends to bring.

Filing is on the first day of trial under Rule 3401(9)(b)(vi) and (vii) unless the department order moves it up, which most do. PS1 requires a separate tabbed binder of all motions and oppositions when more than five motions have been filed.

Motions in limine shall be brought only if the parties disagree as to the subject of the motion. If there is no disagreement, then the agreed-upon issue shall be included in the parties' stipulation of facts and legal issues. b) Every motion in limine submitted to the Court: i) Shall be in writing. ii) Shall be numbered sequentially according to the party or side bringing it (e.g., Plaintiff's No. 1, Plaintiff's No. 2, Defendant Smith's No. 1, Defendant's #2, etc.). iii) Shall be tailored to the specific issues of the case and to the specific evidence expected to be introduced at trial. They shall not seek declarations of existing law of general application, e.g., that the opposing party may not introduce inadmissible hearsay. iv) Shall be supported by a memorandum of points and authorities. c) Any motion or opposition to a motion that depends upon the existence of particular facts shall be supported by competent, admissible evidence establishing those facts.

Rule 3401(6)(c) continues: "Any declaration submitted must demonstrate the declarant's personal knowledge. Any documentary evidence must be authenticated." Rule 3401(6)(d) requires a motion to exclude to describe the specific evidence and carry a declaration both showing the subject was discussed with opposing counsel who either said the matter will be mentioned or refused to stipulate, and explaining the specific prejudice. Rule 3401(6)(e) bars a motion to exclude merely because evidence differs from a discovery response, outside issue preclusion on RFA responses, prior discovery sanctions, or other extraordinary circumstances.

Any party submitting any motions in limine shall submit a single proposed order encompassing all motions made by that party. As to each motion, the proposed order shall state the precise relief sought so that the ruling can be understood from the language of the order without the need to refer to the text of the motion. If the motion seeks to exclude certain evidence, the proposed order shall describe the precise evidence being excluded, shall direct counsel not to refer to the excluded evidence during trial, and shall direct counsel to advise their parties and witnesses not to refer to it.

One proposed order per party, not one per motion. The Binder Guidelines booklet puts a Joint Index and a Joint Proposed Order at the front of tab 10, ahead of the motions themselves.