The Pierce County Superior Court local rules govern how cases are filed, scheduled, heard, and resolved in Tacoma, and they sit on top of Washington’s statewide civil and criminal rules. The current version took effect September 1, 2025, and is published on the county’s website at piercecountywa.gov/1195/Local-Rules.1Pierce County, WA. Local Rules The Washington Courts site hosts a PDF copy organized into administrative and civil rules (PCLR), criminal rules (PCLCRR), and family law rules (PCLSPR).2Washington Courts. Pierce County Superior Court Local Rules Because Pierce County amends its rules periodically, confirm the effective date before relying on any copy you find. What follows walks through the rules that actually shape a case: filing, motion practice, working copies, LINX, and the extras that apply in family law.
Starting a Civil Case
Every new civil case begins with a Case Cover Sheet filed alongside the initial pleading. The form captures the case title, attorney name and bar number, contact information, and a case-type checkbox tied to a cause code the clerk uses for routing. Categories include domestic relations, torts, property rights, medical malpractice, and others. If none fits, you can describe the cause of action and the case will be classified as miscellaneous.3Pierce County Superior Court. Pierce County Superior Court Case Cover Sheet
Most civil cases also require a Track Assignment Request. The track you pick drives discovery cutoffs, trial timing, witness limits, and the interrogatory cap:4Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 3 Commencement of Action Case Schedule
- Expedited track: discovery cutoff at 20 weeks, trial at 26 weeks. Presumed for cases with four or fewer witnesses. Non-party depositions require court permission, and interrogatories are capped at 25.
- Standard track: discovery cutoff at 45 weeks, trial at 52 weeks. Breach of contract, personal injury, title disputes, construction defect, and discrimination cases default here. Interrogatories are capped at 35.
- Complex track: discovery cutoff at 67 weeks, trial at 78 weeks. Medical malpractice, product liability, and class actions default here.
If you want a different track than the presumed one for your case type, you must explain the request on the form or the clerk will reject it.5Pierce County Superior Court. Track Assignment Request Form Dissolutions and Land Use Petition Act (LUPA) cases have separate track designations outside the three-tier system.
Motion Practice Under PCLR 7
PCLR 7 is the rule you will use most often in active litigation. Motions are heard Friday mornings at 9:00 a.m. unless the assigned department sets a different date. When Friday is a non-judicial day, the hearing shifts to the judicial day immediately before it.6Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 7 Motions Judges and Commissioners
To get on the calendar, file a Note for Motion Docket in the court-approved format. Filing is not enough. The moving party must confirm the motion no earlier than five court days before the hearing and no later than noon three court days before it. For a standard Friday hearing with no intervening holidays, that window runs from the previous Friday through noon Tuesday of the hearing week. You can confirm by calling the judicial assistant for your department or electronically through LINX. A motion that is not timely confirmed can be struck.6Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 7 Motions Judges and Commissioners
Some motions are decided on the papers with no oral argument; others allow live argument from each side. The assigned department usually indicates which; if the note or order is silent, ask the judicial assistant. Continuances are at the court’s discretion, with one important limit. Summary judgment hearings cannot be continued without the assigned judge’s explicit permission, and any continued summary judgment motion must be reconfirmed under the standard PCLR 7 procedure.
Working Copies
Working copies are where motions get lost that should have been won. The assigned judicial department must receive a working copy of all motion papers, delivered to the department directly or to the Court Administrator’s office. E-filing through LINX does not satisfy this requirement. You are still responsible for getting working copies to the department separately.7Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 7 Motions Judges and Commissioners – Section 7 Working Copies
The working-copy deadline matches the service deadline for the corresponding papers. Opposing papers must reach the department by noon three court days before the hearing. Reply papers must arrive by noon two court days before.6Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 7 Motions Judges and Commissioners Judges are not required to hunt through the electronic record for papers you failed to deliver in hard copy. Missing the deadline can mean the court strikes your motion or declines to consider late materials.
E-Filing Through LINX
Pierce County uses the Legal Information Network Exchange (LINX) for electronic case management and filing. LINX is a shared database used by the Superior Court and other entities within the county’s criminal justice system, and the Clerk maintains the official court record within it.8Administrative Office of the Courts. Pierce County Superior Court LINX System
Both attorneys and self-represented parties can set up free LINX accounts. Self-represented litigants complete a LINX Account Setup Form online, and the Clerk’s Office emails login credentials within one to two business days.9Pierce County, WA. E-Filing Through LINX you can e-file documents, e-serve opposing parties, submit proposed orders through the ex parte process, and confirm or strike proceedings. Washington’s base filing fee for most new civil actions is $200, and Pierce County publishes its own fee schedule covering surcharges and additional fees beyond the statutory base.10Washington State Legislature. RCW 36.18.020 Paper filings are still accepted at the Clerk’s Office in the County-City Building, but electronic filing is the standard.11Pierce County, WA. Clerk of the Superior Court
Family Law Cases
Parenting Seminar
If a case involves minor children, every party must complete the approved parenting seminar “Impact on Children” within 60 days after service of the petition or motion that initiated the case.12Pierce County, WA. Impact on Children Seminar Details The requirement covers dissolutions, legal separations, major modifications of parenting plans, petitions for a parenting plan or residential schedule, and paternity actions where paternity has been established. The seminar costs up to $60 per participant, with sliding-fee options through approved providers, and both online and in-person formats are available.13Pierce County, WA. Approved Seminar Providers
Willful refusal or delay in completing the seminar can be treated as contempt, with sanctions that include monetary penalties, striking pleadings, or denying the relief you requested. File the certificate of completion with the clerk as soon as you finish.12Pierce County, WA. Impact on Children Seminar Details
Mandatory ADR
Pierce County requires some form of alternative dispute resolution in all cases before trial, and family law is no exception. For dissolutions, paternity cases with a parenting plan, and post-dissolution custody modifications, the assigned judge will make a settlement conference available; parties can alternatively use mediation or another ADR process to satisfy the requirement.14Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 16 Pretrial and Settlement Procedures
ADR can be waived when a domestic violence restraining or protection order has been entered within the past twelve months, when a no-contact order exists under Washington’s domestic violence statutes, when child abuse allegations make mandatory ADR inappropriate, or for other good cause. The waiver requires a written motion to the assigned judge on the form specified in the rules. Nonparental custody petitions under RCW 26.10 are exempt from mandatory ADR by default, though a judge can still order it to resolve the parenting plan.14Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 16 Pretrial and Settlement Procedures
Guardian ad Litem
In contested custody disputes, the court can appoint a guardian ad litem to investigate and report on the child’s best interests. Any appointed GAL must come from the county’s Title 26.09 GAL Registry.15Pierce County, WA. Guardians ad Litem and Court Visitors The appointment uses pattern form FL 146, and parties are typically required to deposit a retainer with the Clerk’s Office before the GAL begins work. GAL fees can be substantial, so factor the cost into your litigation budget. The GAL conducts interviews, reviews records, and files a written report with recommendations for the court.
Remote Appearances
Pierce County Superior Court uses Zoom for remote hearings, but in-person attendance is the default. Each judicial department sets its own policy. Some departments require a written request for a Zoom appearance at least seven days before the hearing; others require five business days’ written notice.16Pierce County, WA. Superior Court Commissioner courtrooms publish their own Zoom links for applicable proceedings. Check with your assigned department early enough to meet whatever request deadline applies. Do not assume remote appearance is available without prior arrangement.
Self-Represented Parties
Pierce County publishes a civil procedure page for people navigating the court without an attorney, with links to e-filing instructions, formatting guides, and service-of-process resources.17Pierce County, WA. Civil Procedure Court staff cannot give legal advice or tell you what to file. But the procedural tools are accessible: LINX accounts are free, the local rules are online, and the required forms are downloadable from the Clerk’s forms page.18Pierce County, WA. Forms
One rule shift matters for self-represented parties who are physically confined under a court order: your motions are deemed confirmed at filing, so you do not need to complete the separate confirmation step under PCLR 7.6Pierce County Superior Court. PCLR 7 Motions Judges and Commissioners