Siskiyou County trial binder and trial document requirements

Civil cases that have an estimate for trial in excess of one full day, whether or not subject to the Trial Court Delay Reduction Act, may be set for settlement conference at the discretion of the Court. The settlement conference will be held not earlier than ninety (90) days prior to trial, unless otherwise stipulated by the parties, in writing.

Narrowed from the draft, which called settlement conferences flatly discretionary and not mandatory. The operative text is permissive, but subdivision A is captioned "A. Required Conference," so do not represent to a court that this county has no MSC requirement. Read the 90 days correctly: it is a floor on how early the conference can sit, not a deadline, so the conference falls somewhere inside the last 90 days before trial and can be much closer. Rule 5.07(A)(2) adds that "Any matter may be voluntarily submitted to the Court for settlement conference." The settlement conference date is one of the items the case management order schedules under Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(x). Rule 5.07 sits in Chapter 5, Miscellaneous Civil Rules.

No later than five (5) calendar days prior to the date fixed for the settlement conference, the parties must file with the Court, and must serve upon all other parties, a brief statement of the facts and the law of the case.

Five calendar days, not court days. Subdivision C was amended July 1, 2023, so older forms may show a different number. This is the closest thing Siskiyou has to a required trial brief and it is tied to the settlement conference rather than to trial. A case that never gets a settlement conference never files a written statement of facts and law anywhere. No page limit, format or caption is prescribed.

At the settlement conference, all parties must: 1) Be prepared to make a bona fide settlement offer; 2) Have all principals or clients either in attendance or available by telephone, unless excused in advance for good cause shown, after notice to all other parties that a request to be excused will be made (requests for non-appearance may be made by letter); 3) Produce memoranda of items of any special damages claimed; and 4) Have available any and all medical reports (if a personal injury is claimed), depositions, photographs, records, diagrams, maps, bills, contracts, memoranda and other documents pertinent to settlement of the case.

The only place in the Siskiyou local rules where a party is told to assemble a set of documents for a court proceeding, so it is the nearest functional analogue to a binder requirement. Differences from a real binder rule: the materials are to be "available" and "produced," not lodged, indexed, tabbed or filed, and there is no copy requirement. A request to be excused from personal attendance must be made in advance with notice to all parties and may be made by letter. This is also the only occurrence of the word "deposition" in the entire rulebook, confirmed by a full-text count.

xi. Scheduling of dates relating to exchange of witness and evidence identification; dates for jury deposit; and dates for filing and service of proposed verdicts, findings, jury instructions, and motions in limine; and

This single subdivision is the whole trial document regime in this county. The lead-in at Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a) reads "At or immediately following the case management conference, the Court will issue an order addressing any further proceedings as well as current matters, including, if appropriate:" followed by items i through xii. Note the colon and the qualifier "if appropriate," so the order in a given case may not address every item. Item vii carries the cut-off dates for general discovery, expert-related discovery, discovery-related motions and general law and motion matters. Item iv provides that contested issues identified at the conference "will identify the issues to be tried and will supersede the pleadings in that respect," which makes the case management order the operative statement of trial issues.

xi. Scheduling of dates relating to exchange of witness and evidence identification; dates for jury deposit; and dates for filing and service of proposed verdicts, findings, jury instructions, and motions in limine; and

The rule says "exchange," not file. Verified negative: I read Chapters 3, 4 and 5 in full and swept the whole rulebook for "witness list." Every other hit is criminal. Rule 6.11 requires a written witness list with names and addresses at the criminal trial readiness conference and provides that "Written witness lists shall be filed with the court when served on the opposing party," and Rule 6.14(C)(2) puts a witness list in the criminal mandatory exchange due no later than 14 days before the first day of trial. Both sit in Chapter 6, Criminal Rules, Misdemeanors and Felonies. Do not borrow either.

xi. Scheduling of dates relating to exchange of witness and evidence identification; dates for jury deposit; and dates for filing and service of proposed verdicts, findings, jury instructions, and motions in limine; and

"Evidence identification" is the only civil hook for exhibits. Verified negative across Chapters 3, 4 and 5. Two detailed exhibit list rules exist in this rulebook and neither reaches civil cases. Rule 8.06(G), Chapter 8 Family Law Rules, under Rule 8.06 Contested Trials, requires a list of exhibits lodged at time of trial and an exchange of legible copies at least five court days before trial, with only disclosed exhibits admissible absent good cause. Rule 6.14(C)(3), Chapter 6 Criminal Rules, puts an exhibit list in the mandatory exchange 14 days before trial.

Pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure §607a, all jury instructions covering the law as disclosed by the pleadings must be delivered in writing to the trial judge before jury voir dire commences, unless indicated by the judge. At the same time, copies thereof must be served upon all opposing counsel or unrepresented parties.

The token before_voir_dire means at or before the commencement of jury voir dire on the first day of trial. That is the literal trigger and it is not expressible as a day count. Note "delivered" to the judge, not filed. Two qualifiers. "Unless indicated by the judge" lets the trial judge move the date, so ask. And this is the outer default only: the case management order may set an earlier filing and service date for proposed jury instructions under Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(xi), and that earlier date controls. Rule 4.07 is captioned Conduct of Civil Jury Trials. Subdivision D was amended effective July 1, 2024.

Thereafter, but before commencement of argument, any additional proposed instructions upon questions developed by the evidence and not disclosed by the pleadings may be delivered to the trial judge and served upon the opposing side or sides.

The token before_argument means at or before the commencement of closing argument. This is the safety valve for instructions the pleadings did not foreshadow. It is permissive, so it is an opportunity, not an obligation, and it does not rescue an instruction the pleadings did disclose that was not tendered before voir dire under subdivision (D)(1).

Desired CACI instructions in which deletions, strikeouts, insertions or other changes have been made must be referenced by number, and must carry a notation that there has been a modification thereto; and a copy of the instruction, as modified, must be provided to the trial judge.

Offset is see_rule because subdivision (E) states no deadline of its own. Timing comes from subdivision (D), so the CACI list and the modified instructions go in with the rest of the packet before voir dire. Subdivision (E)(1) is the permissive half: "The parties may designate their desired standard CACI instructions by giving the trial judge a list of same, referenced by number. The judge will provide the form of such standard instructions." Real convenience here, since you do not have to print unmodified CACI instructions. The notation requirement quoted above is the mandatory half and applies to every modified instruction.

A party who requests a special verdict or special findings must, in connection with requested instructions, comply with Rule 3.1580 of the California Rules of Court, and must serve and file such request or proposed special findings forms before jury voir dire commences.

Different verb from the jury instruction rule. Instructions are "delivered" to the judge under (D)(1); special verdict forms are "serve and file," so these go into the court file. The phrase "in connection with requested instructions" ties the verdict form to the instruction packet, so build them together. As with instructions, the case management order may set an earlier date for filing and service of proposed verdicts and findings under Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(xi), and that earlier date controls.

A special verdict or special findings form must be drafted so as to require, if possible, an answer of "yes" or "no", or, if that is not possible, then to require the most concise answer that will be sufficient.

A form-content rule, not a deadline, so offset is see_rule and the timing is governed by (F)(1). Worth honoring because it is the court's stated preference and a narrative-answer verdict form invites rejection.

Trial and post-trial proceedings, including but not limited to motions in limine, are governed by Chapter Four of these Rules.

Rule 3.01 otherwise makes Chapter 3 controlling for law and motion. The carve-out means the Chapter 3 machinery, Rule 3.02 filing times and format and Rule 3.06 continuances, does not automatically govern an in limine motion. Having read Chapter 4 in full, the only place it addresses motions in limine is Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(xi). So the in limine deadline in a Siskiyou civil case comes from the case management order and nowhere else. There is no page limit anywhere in Chapter 3 or Chapter 4. The only page limits in the entire rulebook are in Rule 3.09(A), which governs extraordinary writ briefs and does not reach an in limine motion.

xi. Scheduling of dates relating to exchange of witness and evidence identification; dates for jury deposit; and dates for filing and service of proposed verdicts, findings, jury instructions, and motions in limine; and

There are two hard in limine deadlines in this rulebook and both are criminal. Rule 6.13(A) provides that "Absent a showing of good cause, in limine motions shall be noticed and heard at, or prior to, the pre-voir dire conference." Rule 6.14(C)(6) puts "Motions in limine not previously filed and heard" in the mandatory exchange due no later than 14 days before the first day of trial. Chapter 6 is captioned Criminal Rules, Misdemeanors and Felonies. Do not carry either across.

In most cases, the Court will implement that mandate by conducting, at minimum, two (2) pre-trial conferences, described as follows: (a) An Initial Case Management Conference, where the parties must be prepared to state that service of all pleadings has been effected on all parties, and to schedule arbitration if appropriate; and (b) An Additional Case Management Conference, where the parties must be prepared to declare the case to be at issue; to identify all issues to be tried; to inform the Court as to all case management issues; to summarize the pertinent results of discovery activity; to address alternative dispute resolution and settlement; and to schedule arbitration, trial, or other proceedings.

Verified in the July 1, 2026 rulebook. Chapter 4 is captioned "SETTING FOR TRIAL, AND TRIAL, IN CIVIL MATTERS," so the division is civil. Under Rule 4.01(A)(3)(a) the clerk sets the Initial Case Management Conference "on the first case management calendar that falls no earlier than the 140th day after case initiation," keyed to filing, not to trial. Rule 4.01(A)(2)(e) presumes each general civil case needs no more than twelve months from filing to disposition. Short cause matters, four hours or less to try, can skip the case management track under Rule 4.01(C). Chapter 4 runs 4.01 through 4.08 with 4.03 reserved, and I read all of it.

Not later than fifteen (15) calendar days prior to every Case Management Conference (including Additional Case Management Conferences), each party must file, and serve on all other parties, a fully-completed case management conference statement prepared on Judicial Council Form CM-110.

Fifteen calendar days, not court days. The rule says "every" conference, so it repeats at each Additional Case Management Conference, which is the conference that sets the trial date and the trial document dates. The anchor is the conference date, which the court sets. Separately, Rule 4.02(C) provides that if a trial date is continued by stipulation or at any time other than during a case management conference, the matter returns to the regular case management calendar "and at least five (5) days before that date each party must file a current and complete case management statement (Judicial Council Form CM-110)." The PDF runs "CM-110.At" together at this point, a typesetting artifact in the court's own file.

The following documents are excluded from E-Filing and must be submitted in paper format: a. Original Will and Codicil. b. Bonds/undertaking. c. Exhibits to be lodged for hearings or trials. d. Subpoenaed documents. e. Copy requests. f. Any document to be submitted in paper format ordered by the Court.

Answers the paper versus electronic half of the binder question even though the court has no binder rule. Rule 2.23 is captioned "Electronic Filing (E-Filing) in Civil, Probate, Family Law, and Small Claims," so it reaches civil, and it was adopted effective July 1, 2024. Rule 2.23(A) confirms e-filing here is permissive: "E-Filing is permissive and paper filings will continue to be accepted in-person at the clerk's service windows." The rule sets no time or place for lodging trial exhibits, so ask the clerk and the assigned judge.

Documents submitted through E-Filing must be in PDF Format, text searchable, and viewable on any standard PDF viewer. a. All documents equal to or exceeding 10 pages and containing multiple exhibits or sections must be bookmarked with the title of the corresponding exhibit or section. b. All documents submitted electronically must include page numbers.

The electronic substitute for tabs, and the only indexing or navigation requirement the court imposes on anything. It applies to motions in limine, trial briefs and declarations filed electronically before trial. It does not apply to the exhibits themselves, which cannot be e-filed at all under (A)(5)(c). Under Rule 2.23(A)(3), a document received electronically between 12:00 a.m. and 11:59:59 p.m. on a court day is deemed filed that day, and one received on a weekend or holiday is deemed filed the next court day.

Any party who requests the presence of an official court reporter for a trial or other proceeding not normally reported (as set forth in subpart 2.02.A, above) must make that request, by written notice to the clerk of the Court, not less than ten (10) days prior to commencement of the proceeding or at such other time as the Court may require; and at the same time the requesting party, in order to reserve an official court reporter, must deliver a deposit to the clerk of the Court in an amount that is equal to the fee for the first full day of the court reporter's services.

Ten calendar days. Calendar this alongside the trial documents. Rule 2.02(A) is the predicate and is explicit that civil trials are on the unreported list: "The following proceedings are not normally reported by an official court reporter: any infraction or misdemeanor proceeding or trial; civil, probate, and family law trials ..." The fee is calculated under California Rule of Court 2.958, and the deposit and fee are waived for parties proceeding in forma pauperis under Jameson v. Desta. Two forms are in play and they conflict on their face: the rule text says "Any request for a court reporter by a party with a fee waiver must be made on Judicial Council Form FW-020," while the court's Forms and Filing page lists local form SC-CV-5, Request for Court Reporter by a Party with a Fee Waiver, as Mandatory. Ask the clerk which one they want. Note the escape hatch "or at such other time as the Court may require," so the assigned judge can move this date, and subdivision B was amended effective July 1, 2025. Rule 2.02(C) forfeits the deposit if the requesting party does not notify the court manager and the reporter's office at least 24 hours before a proceeding that settles or continues. Finally, if no reporter is available the court has a published standing order dated June 9, 2022 providing that "When a court reporter is unavailable, electronic recording may be utilized by the court at the direction of a judicial officer," and in a civil case where a verbatim record is mandated or the judicial officer believes one is necessary, the recording "will serve as the official record of the proceedings."

All dates for trial are firm; no trial date will be changed without Court approval. Motions to advance a trial date, to reset or specially-set a case for trial, or to continue a trial date must be made on written notice to all parties who have appeared, and must be set for hearing.

A stipulation can substitute for the motion under Rule 4.02(B), but only if all parties agree in writing, the stipulation sets out good cause under California Rule of Court 3.1332 and states it is subject to court approval, and a proposed order goes with it. Rule 4.02(C) adds a consequence that catches people out: if the trial date is continued by stipulation or at any time other than during a case management conference, the case goes back onto the regular case management calendar and each party must file a current and complete CM-110 at least five days before that date.

Whenever a case that has been assigned a trial date settles, the attorneys or unrepresented parties must immediately notify the Court of the settlement. The plaintiff bears the primary obligation to so notify the Court. Notification may be by telephone to the clerk, but, in such case, must be followed within five (5) days by a confirmation letter, copied to all parties.

Added on audit. The draft missed this and it is a live trial-adjacent duty in Chapter 4, civil. The plaintiff carries the primary obligation, which matters on a multi-party construction defect case that settles piecemeal. The rest of the rule provides that notification "will cause the clerk to vacate any trial date and to remove the action from the master calendar and civil active list, and may result in the setting of a further case management conference, to assure that the case is dismissed or judgment entered." Compare Rule 5.07(D): a calendared settlement conference is not dropped until settlement papers or a dismissal are filed and the clerk is told.

If a named party has not been served, then ordinarily, at or before the time of trial, the plaintiff will be required to dismiss, without prejudice, as to that party.

Added on audit. The draft missed this. It matters for any case carrying unserved named defendants or Doe defendants into trial. Rule 4.06 is captioned Parties not Present for Trial and sits in Chapter 4, civil. Subdivision A allows judgment against a served, non-answering party under Code of Civil Procedure sections 585 or 586 on proper application, and subdivision B lets the court proceed under section 594 where an answering party does not appear.

Non-Compliance with Delay Reduction Rules. Failure to appear at and/or failure to file appropriate required statements for any Case Management Conference scheduled under these Rules may result in the imposition of sanctions, the dismissal of the action, or the striking of responsive pleadings.

The sharpest consequence provision touching trial preparation, and it bites at the conference that sets the trial document deadlines. Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(xii) reinforces it by listing "Sanctions for violations of these Rules, if any violations have occurred up to and including the time of the case management conference" among the matters the case management order addresses, so the court is expected to rule on past violations in the same order that sets the trial schedule. Separately, Rule 4.01(A)(2)(d) provides for a court review of each civil case roughly 80 to 90 days after filing, with discretionary sanctions after notice and an opportunity to be heard if the plaintiff missed the service benchmarks.

A violation of these Rules of Court constitutes a violation of a lawful court order, as that term is used in Code of Civil Procedure §177.5, and may subject the party and/or counsel to sanctions thereunder or as otherwise provided by law. In addition to sanctions authorized by the Code of Civil Procedure, the Court adopts and incorporates herein the provisions of Rule 2.30 of the California Rules of Court. Any request for money sanctions must be made upon advance notice, in writing, unless ordered on the Court's own motion, in which case notice need not be in writing.

The general civil sanctions rule, in Chapter 5, Miscellaneous Civil Rules. It converts every civil local rule above, including the Rule 4.07 jury instruction and verdict form timing, into an order backed by section 177.5. On the filing side, Rule 3.02(A) adds that papers failing to comply with California Rules of Court 2.100 through 2.119, 3.1110 and 3.1112 through 3.1115 "may, in the Court's discretion, constitute a sufficient basis for the Court to deny relief or to otherwise disregard the papers filed." Rule 3.02(B) adds the same consequence for a paper or proof of service that is filed or served late. Rule 3.02 contains no page limit and no over-length provision. The only page limits in this rulebook are in Rule 3.09(A), which governs extraordinary writ briefs.

Exhibits admitted into evidence will be handed to jurors in the jury box only after leave to do so is obtained from the trial judge. Exhibits such as writings, which are not subject to cursory examination, ordinarily will not be provided to jurors until they retire to the jury room after the cause has been submitted.

Relevant to how you plan to use a document-heavy exhibit set at trial. If the case turns on contracts, reports or correspondence, plan to publish them by other means during testimony, because this rule says the jury will not be handed them to read until deliberations.

When the party who has demanded a jury trial waives or is deemed to have waived a jury, the other party or parties will have up to five (5) court days from the date that the clerk mails the notice of waiver, to deposit one day's jury fees. (Note: this five-day period is not subject to extension pursuant to CCP §1005 or any other provision of law.) However, if the waiver occurs within five (5) days of the commencement of the trial, or if it occurs after trial has commenced, then the other party or parties must make the deposit on the first or next trial day.

Anchor and offset both corrected on audit. The draft carried this as trial_date and -5_court_days, which reads as five court days before trial and is wrong. The period runs FORWARD, five court days from the date the clerk mails the notice of waiver, and that mailing can be months before trial. I define the token +5_court_days_from_clerk_notice to mean exactly that. The trial date enters only through the second branch: if the waiver lands within five days of the commencement of trial, or after trial has started, the deposit is due on the first or next trial day. The no-extension parenthetical is stated in the rule itself. Rule 4.05(B) supplies the consequence: "If the other parties fail to deposit fees as prescribed herein, after waiver by the party who has demanded a jury trial, then the other parties will be deemed to have waived the right to a jury trial, and the case will be tried without a jury." Rule 4.05(C) provides that if more than one party demands a jury each must deposit unless fees were already deposited, and the clerk keeps only the first timely deposit and refunds the rest. The jury deposit date is also one of the items the case management order sets under Rule 4.01(A)(5)(a)(xi).