How to Complete the California MC-020: Declarations, Exhibits, and Filing

The California MC-020 form is a blank continuation page published by the Judicial Council that you attach to another court form or filing when you run out of room to write.¹ It is never filed on its own. The page gives you 27 numbered lines, a short-title field, a case-number field, and a special line for verified pleadings, and it works with any Judicial Council form or other paper filed with the court.²

When You’d Reach for MC-020

Use MC-020 whenever a Judicial Council form or other court paper doesn’t leave enough room to finish what you need to say. Common examples: continuing a list of facts, adding details to a petition or response, or extending a description of property that won’t fit in the space provided. Because the form is generic, it works across case types — family law, civil, probate, small claims.

Before you grab MC-020, check that it’s actually the right continuation form. Several look similar and get mixed up:

MC-020 (Additional Page) is a general-purpose continuation page. It has no signature block and no penalty-of-perjury language.
MC-025 (Attachment to Judicial Council Form) is designed to continue a numbered item from a fill-in-the-box Judicial Council form.³
MC-030 (Declaration) is a standalone sworn declaration signed under penalty of perjury.⁴
MC-031 (Attached Declaration) gives you extra space for a sworn declaration attached to another form, and it carries the penalty-of-perjury language built in.⁵

The practical distinction: if you need the continuation itself signed under penalty of perjury, use MC-031. If you just need more room to finish a list, continue a narrative, or add facts to a pleading, MC-020 is right.

How to Fill Out the Form

MC-020 is one of the simplest Judicial Council forms to complete, but the header fields matter. Get them wrong and the clerk may misfile the page.

At the top, enter the short title exactly as it appears on the parent form. This is typically the last names of the parties, such as “Smith v. Jones.” Copy it verbatim so the clerk can match the continuation to the correct filing. Next, enter the case number assigned by the court. Every page filed needs this number; a wrong or missing case number is the fastest way for a document to disappear inside the system.²

The body of the form is 27 numbered lines. If you’re continuing a specific numbered item from the parent form, tell the judge where it fits. Start line 1 with something like “Item 8 (continued):” and pick up your narrative from there.

At the bottom, a “Page” field lets you number the continuation within the overall filing. If you’re using two MC-020 pages, number them sequentially. Consecutive pagination across the entire filing is required under the California Rules of Court.⁶

The Information and Belief Line

Just above the page-number field is a line that reads: “The items on this page stated on information and belief are (specify item numbers, not line numbers).” This exists for verified pleadings, where you swear the contents are true but some facts rest on what you reasonably believe rather than what you personally witnessed. If you’re using MC-020 to continue a verified complaint or petition, list the item numbers of any statements made on information and belief. Leave the field blank otherwise.

If You’re Continuing a Declaration

You can use MC-020 to continue the body of a declaration, but the signature and the penalty-of-perjury certification go on the declaration form itself, not on MC-020. Under California Code of Civil Procedure section 2015.5, a declaration must include language certifying the statements are true and correct under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California, and it must be signed and dated by the declarant.⁷ That certification covers any MC-020 pages attached to the declaration. If you’d rather have the perjury language and signature block built into the continuation page itself, switch to MC-031.

Formatting Requirements That Still Apply

The pre-printed layout handles most formatting for you. The numbered lines, margins, and line spacing are already built in, so handwritten entries comply automatically. If you’re typing into the fillable PDF, a few Rules of Court still apply.

Use a proportionally spaced font of at least 12 points, and keep each line of typed text aligned with the corresponding line number on the form. Lines must be one-and-a-half or double-spaced, with at least three line numbers per vertical inch — again, the form already meets this.⁸ Left margins run at least one inch from the left edge, right margins at least half an inch from the right.⁹ When typing, watch that your text doesn’t overflow past those boundaries in the PDF.

Attaching Exhibits

If your MC-020 references documents the judge should see — contracts, photos, medical records — attach them as exhibits behind the form. Label each with a letter or number, separate paper exhibits with tabbed divider sheets, and include an index describing each exhibit with its corresponding page number.⁶ Exhibits in a foreign language need a certified English translation from a qualified interpreter.

Redact Sensitive Information

Before filing, read through your text for personal identifiers. California Rules of Court require you to redact Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and similar sensitive data from any court filing. The clerk won’t do this for you. If the court actually needs the information, you can use abbreviations in the filing and submit a separate confidential reference list on Judicial Council Form MC-120. Failing to redact can result in monetary sanctions.

Filing and Serving the Packet

MC-020 is filed as part of the parent document, not separately. The mechanics depend on how the court accepts filings:

E-filing: many California superior courts require attorneys to e-file through approved vendors, and MC-020 is uploaded inside the same PDF as the parent document rather than as a separate filing.¹⁰
Paper filing: at the clerk’s window, bind all pages together at the top so they turn easily.⁶

The clerk returns a conformed copy with the court’s date stamp. Keep it. That stamp proves when the document entered the official record.

Serving the Other Parties

After the filing is date-stamped, someone must deliver a copy of the full document — MC-020 pages included — to every other party. That someone has to be an adult who is not a party to the case, not you. Once service is complete, the server fills out a proof of service form documenting who received the papers, when, and how, and you file that proof with the court.¹¹

Timing When the Filing Supports a Motion

If your MC-020 is part of a motion or a supporting declaration, watch the deadlines. Supporting papers for most motions must be served and filed at least 16 court days before the hearing. Serving by mail within California adds five calendar days to that deadline; service by overnight delivery or fax adds two calendar days.¹² Miss these and the judge may never consider your filing. Count backward from the hearing date and build in a cushion.

Electronic Signatures on Continued Declarations

If you’re e-filing an MC-020 that continues a declaration, the electronic-signature rules matter. California law allows two methods for documents signed under penalty of perjury and filed electronically. First, the declarant can sign a printed version of the document on or before the filing date, with the attorney keeping the wet-ink copy until the case ends. Second, the declarant can sign using a technology-based method adopted under the California Rules of Court. Either way, the filing attorney is representing to the court that a valid signature exists, and you need to be able to produce the original if the court or another party asks.

This only comes up when MC-020 is part of a sworn document. If you’re continuing an unsigned form such as a case information sheet or a property list, the sworn-document signature rules don’t apply.

1
California Courts. Additional Page (MC-020)
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California Courts. MC-020 Additional Page
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California Courts. Attachment to Judicial Council Form (MC-025)
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California Courts. Declaration (MC-030)
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California Courts. Attached Declaration (MC-031)
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Judicial Branch of California. Rule 3.1110 General Format
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California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 2015.5
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Judicial Branch of California. Rule 2.108 Spacing and Numbering of Lines
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Judicial Branch of California. Rule 2.107 Margins
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Superior Court of California, County of Orange. eFiling
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California Courts. Serving Court Papers
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California Legislative Information. California Code CCP 2015.5