CA Court Structure Flashcards

Question

Pleading Format Margins

Answer 1

Left margin be at least 1” from left edge Right margin at least .5” from right edge

Answer 2

Page must be one and one-half spaced or double-spaced and numbered consecutively Descriptions of real property may be single-spaced Footnotes and quotes may be single-spaced

Answer 3

Each page must be numbered consecutively at the bottom, unless rules for the type of doc dictate otherwise Page numbvering must begin with the first page (caption page) Only Arabic numerals Number can be suppressed and need not appear on the first page Do not number table of contents, tables of authorities with roman numerals Roman numerals outlawed in part bc they are difficult to enter when searching PDF Doc may be rejected if pages are numbered incorrectly

Answer 4

Except for exhibits, each paper filed with the court must bear a footer in the bottom margin of each page, placed below the page number and divided from the rest of the doc page by a printed line Footer must contain title of paper or some clear/concise abbreviation Font size of the title of the paper in the footer must be at least 10-point font

Answer 5

Attorney name(s) and State Bar number Office address Telephone number and fax number Email address: (Does not consent to service by email unless otherwise provided by law) Who is represented On left side, Below title of court, put title of case: Plaintiff v defendant On initial complaint or cross-complaint, the name of each party must commence on a separate line Subsequent pleading/paper can use short title of the case: 1) Stating the name of the first party of each side; 2) Stating that a cross-action or actions are involved

Answer 6

To the right of the center of page: Blank Space to be left b/w lines 1-7, for clerk to stamp doc Case number goes to the right of and opposite title of case Below case number, nature of paper If multiple parties, any answer, response, or opposition must specifically identify the moving party and the complaint, motion, or other matter being answered or opposed In the caption of every pleading and every other paper filed in a limited civil case, the words “limited civil case” as required by code of civil procedure section 422.30(b)

Answer 7

Format defined by Cal. Rules of court, rule 2.111 Title of the court on or directly below line 8 Some courts have special rules for e-filing, you must always check local rules: Electronic exhibits must be bookmarked Text must be searchable Submitted as pdf(s) Doc should be converted directly to pdf from word/wordperfect if possible Make sure to scan for metadata before filing If you have to scan docs, scan at least 300 dpi

Answer 8

Policymaking body of the CA courts One of the JC’s most well-known functions if the promulgation of a huge number of standard court forms for use in CA judicial proceedings Forms are updated throughout the year Make sure not to use old versions Forms are usually fill in the blank https://www.courts.ca.gov/forms.htm

Answer 9

To find out, check lower lefthand corner of form Mandatory: Summons, civil case cover sheet, request for entry of default, civil cubpoena Optional: Proof of Service by Mail, answer, request for a0dmission

Answer 10

Free Cannot save unless you have Adobe Acrobat (not just Adobe reader) No control over formatting, field entry, text placement

Answer 11

Paid Legal Solutions, hotDocs, SmartLaser Much more time efficient Can save work, organize by client name, will fill in known fields automatically Can change font size/type, add fields where needed, create templates

Answer 12

Law libraries becoming obsolete with the rise of online research, but firms sometimes still use them

Answer 13

Generally, all books in a law library will be updated once/twice a year Depends on the changes to the law and the type of book Book should not be used as a reference if it has not been updated Update will include instructions and the new insert pages It will be your responsibility to read through the instructions and carefully discard the old pages and insert the new pages Some updates are called “pocket parts” and are designed to insert in a special pocket at the back of the book

Answer 14

Written constitutions Codified statutes (codes): Legislative bills which have been signed into law Published judicial decisions (case law):

Answer 15

Any commentary on the law that’s not written by court, legislature, or administrative agency Such sources are never controlling, and at best can be persuasive Digests Treatises Restatements of law Legal periodicals Dictionaries

Answer 16

U.S. Federal Court district in which California is located, covers 15 federal judicial districts, including the four such districts that comprise California

Answer 17

Must be placed at the left margin and separated from the text by a vertical column of space at least 1/5 inch wide or a single/double vertical line Each line number must be aligned with a line of type, or the line numbers must be evenly spaced vertically on the page Line numbers must be consecutively numbered, beginning with one (1) on each page

Answer 18

Oral argument is heard in LA in April, June and December Oral args heard in Sacramento in February and November In san Francisco oral args are heard January, march, may, September, and October

Answer 19

Primary role is to hear appeals from cases in the superior court, not in order to retry the case but in order to determine if legal errors were made Cases decided by three-judge panel Their decisions, called opinions, are published in the California Appellate Reports, jf those opinions meet certain criteria for publication Each opinion, whether published or not, is public record and appears on court website as issued

Answer 20

Like the CA Supreme Court, the CA Courts of Appeal have original jurisdiction in Habeas corpus, mandamus, certiorari, and prohibition proceedings Appellate jurisdiction when the trial courts have original jurisdiction Receive appeals from decisions of the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board; the Agricultural Relations Appeals Board; the Public Employment Relations Board Do not hear testimony or retry cases Decisions based on the record from the original trial proceeding

CA Court Structure Flashcards

(44 cards)