In Riverside County Superior Court, the Certificate of Counsel is a one-page form that must accompany every new civil pleading, telling the clerk which branch courthouse should hear the case and why. A separate form sharing the same name, RI-CI032, comes up later in litigation to certify that attorneys met and conferred over a discovery dispute. The two are unrelated, and mixing them up is the most common mistake.
Why the Certificate Exists
Riverside County spans more than 7,200 square miles, with courthouses from Corona in the west to Blythe near the Arizona border, plus branches in Riverside, Palm Springs, Banning, Moreno Valley, Menifee, and elsewhere in between.1Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Locations and Contact Info Local Rule 3117 requires that every original pleading or application “bear or be accompanied by a Certificate of Counsel designating the proper branch of the Court in which the matter should be tried or heard, together with reason(s) therefore.”2Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Title 3 Civil – Rule 3117 Certificate of Counsel The certificate is how the clerk routes your case to the right building from day one.
How to Pick the Right Branch
Rule 3117 points to Local Rule 3115, which applies California’s venue statutes (Code of Civil Procedure sections 392 through 401) to Riverside County’s geography.3Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Title 3 Civil – Rule 3115 Where to File Documents In practice, three zip codes drive the decision:
- Where the action arose, meaning the zip code where the events giving rise to the lawsuit took place.
- Where any real property at issue is located, if the case involves land, a building, or similar real estate.
- Where the defendant resides.
Those zip codes map to a specific courthouse through the court’s administrative order on where to file civil documents, published alongside the local rules on the court’s website. Once your case lands at a branch, later filings go to the same courthouse. The court retains authority to transfer a case to a different branch if that would make better use of judicial resources. If you’re not sure which courthouse fits your zip code, the self-help centers at any branch can help.3Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Title 3 Civil – Rule 3115 Where to File Documents
What Goes on the Form
The branch-designation Certificate of Counsel is one page. It asks for:
- Party and attorney information: your name, State Bar number if you’re an attorney, address, phone, and the party you represent.
- Case caption: the plaintiff/petitioner and defendant/respondent names, and the case number if one has been assigned.
- The branch and courthouse address where you are filing.
- Venue justification: the zip code where the action arose, the zip code of any real property at issue, and the zip code where the defendant resides.
A signature line closes the form. You’re certifying the branch you chose is proper based on what you’ve written. Self-represented litigants complete the same form attorneys do.
Filing It With Your Complaint
Riverside County requires electronic filing through an approved electronic filing service provider for unlimited civil, limited civil, unlawful detainer, and small claims cases. The court’s eFiling portal is hosted by Journal Technologies.4Journal Technologies. eFiling and Court Reservation System Include the branch-designation certificate with your initial complaint or petition in the same submission.
The certificate itself carries no separate fee. The first-paper fees for the complaint it accompanies, as of January 1, 2026, run $450 for an unlimited civil case, $395 for a limited civil case between $10,000 and $35,000, and $255 for a limited civil case up to $10,000. Public entities are exempt.5Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Fee Schedule
The Discovery Version: Form RI-CI032
A different document also titled “Certificate of Counsel” shows up during discovery. Form RI-CI032 has nothing to do with branch designation. It certifies that an attorney met and conferred in good faith with opposing counsel about a discovery dispute before asking the court to step in.
The form asks the attorney to name opposing counsel, state the date and method of the meet-and-confer effort (phone, in person, or other communication), and describe the dispute. The attorney signs under penalty of perjury that a good-faith attempt to resolve the disagreement failed.6Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. RI-CI032 Certificate of Counsel Attorneys trip up here most often by assuming the only Certificate of Counsel is the one filed at the start of the case.
What Happens If You Skip It
Rule 3117 says the branch-designation certificate “shall” accompany the original pleading, so leaving it out isn’t something you can patch later without cost. The clerk may reject the filing or send a notice to correct the deficiency. If the case ends up at the wrong courthouse, a transfer order can add weeks to your timeline.2Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. Title 3 Civil – Rule 3117 Certificate of Counsel
For the discovery form, a judge who sees a motion without RI-CI032 will likely deny it or take it off calendar until you show a genuine meet-and-confer effort.