San Francisco Superior Court Local Rules: Filing and Motions

The San Francisco Superior Court local rules are the county-specific procedures that sit on top of the statewide California Rules of Court, and the current set took effect January 1, 2026.¹ They control how you file, how you format papers, when you must appear, how you contest a tentative ruling, and how you preserve a jury trial. Miss one of their deadlines and the clerk can bounce your filing, the court can take your motion off calendar, or you can waive rights you thought you still had.

Where to Read the Current Rules

The full text is posted on the San Francisco Superior Court’s website, and physical copies are available for inspection at the courthouse.¹ Proposed changes are posted for public comment before each update cycle, with most revisions taking effect January 1 or July 1.

Always check the effective date printed on the version you are reading. Individual rules are revised on different schedules, and relying on an outdated version can produce rejected filings or missed deadlines you cannot undo.

Filing Documents in Civil Cases

All civil case types must be filed electronically through a court-approved Electronic Filing Service Provider.² The court keeps the list of approved vendors on its website. Self-represented litigants and non-parties are encouraged to e-file but are not required to, with one exception: in probate trust cases, once a self-represented litigant chooses to e-file, that method becomes mandatory for the rest of the case.³

Filers who are exempt or unable to e-file can submit paper documents at the Civil Clerk’s Office at 400 McAllister Street, Room 103.⁴ The clerk reviews each filing for compliance before issuing a “filed” stamp; rejected papers must be corrected and resubmitted.

Forms and Formatting

San Francisco filings use a combination of statewide Judicial Council forms and local forms, both available for download on the court’s website.⁵ The statewide baseline formatting rules apply: standard letter-size paper, at least one-inch margins, and legible type in a standard font. Every document must include the case number, the department where the matter is assigned, and correct party designations. A clean caption on the first page helps the clerk categorize your filing quickly. Formatting errors are one of the most common reasons filings get rejected.

Filing Fees

San Francisco charges higher filing fees than most California counties because of a local surcharge for courthouse construction. For an unlimited civil case (amount over $25,000), the first-paper filing fee is $410. Limited civil cases range from $225 (amount up to $10,000) to $370 (amount over $10,000 up to $25,000). Unlawful detainer actions carry slightly higher fees within each tier.⁶ Verify the current schedule before filing, since amounts change by legislation.

Case Management Conferences

Case management conferences are heard on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. You must file and serve a case management statement on Judicial Council form CM-110 at least fifteen days before the conference.⁷ Courtesy copies must be delivered to the court no later than 1:30 p.m. the day after electronic filing.

A useful shortcut: if you file and serve your case management statement twenty-five days before the conference and lodge it in Department 610, the court may issue a case management order without requiring anyone to appear. Attorneys and parties who do need to appear can do so remotely by Zoom for case management conferences and objection hearings.⁷

Law and Motion Procedure

All limited and unlimited jurisdiction motions are heard in the Law and Motion Department. The moving party e-files the motion (or files in Room 103 if exempt) and then delivers a courtesy copy to the Law and Motion Department. If the motion challenges the sufficiency of an existing pleading, you must also supply a courtesy copy of that pleading.⁸

A motion cannot be noticed in a Law and Motion Department on or after the trial date. Failing to comply with scheduling requirements can result in the matter being taken off calendar. To request a continuance or take a motion off calendar, email the appropriate department (calendar301@sftc.org or calendar302@sftc.org) with a copy to all parties. The email must include the requesting party’s name, case number, and current hearing date. If you want a new date, state that all affected parties have agreed to it. No continuances are granted on the hearing date itself except with a personal appearance and good cause shown in writing.⁸

Tentative Rulings and the 4:00 p.m. Deadline

This is where civil litigants most often lose ground. Tentative rulings are generally posted by 3:00 p.m. the court day before the hearing. You can check them by calling (415) 551-4000 or visiting the court’s website.⁹

To contest a tentative ruling, you must notify all opposing parties and the court no later than 4:00 p.m. the day before the hearing. Notice to the court goes by email to contestdept302tr@sftc.org, with a copy to all other parties, stating which portions of the ruling you contest, without argument. If no one gives notice and no one appears, the tentative ruling automatically becomes the court’s order. A party who fails to appear is deemed to have submitted to the tentative ruling.⁹

If a tentative ruling posts after 3:00 p.m., it will be marked as late. All parties then must appear at the hearing unless they unanimously agree to submit to the late tentative ruling.⁹

Discovery Meet-and-Confer

Before a discovery dispute reaches a judge, the parties must make a real effort to work it out. Under California Rules of Court Rule 3.724, parties must meet and confer, in person or by phone, no later than thirty calendar days before the initial case management conference. The discussion must cover resolving discovery disputes, setting a discovery schedule, and identifying anticipated motions.¹⁰

Electronically stored information deserves separate attention. Parties should discuss preservation obligations, the format for producing electronic records, production timelines, how to handle privilege claims after production, confidentiality protections, and how production costs will be split.¹⁰ Skipping the conversation invites sanctions and wastes everyone’s time when the judge sends you back to have it.

Preserving a Jury Trial

To keep your right to a jury in a civil case, at least one party on each side must pay a nonrefundable $150 fee. The fee is due on or before the date set for the initial case management conference. In unlawful detainer actions, it is due at least five days before the trial date.¹¹

Under San Francisco Local Rule 7.0, the fees are deposited with the clerk by the demanding party, and the jury may never be told which side is paying. For unlawful detainer cases specifically, the jury demand must be made within five days of receiving personal notice of the trial date, or ten days if the clerk mailed the notice.¹² Courts are strict about these deadlines, and missing them waives the right to a jury.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

The court’s policy is that every long-cause, non-criminal, non-juvenile case should participate in some form of ADR before trial: mediation, arbitration, neutral evaluation, or an early settlement conference.⁸

All non-exempt civil cases that are at issue and qualify under the judicial arbitration statutes must be submitted to arbitration. Once placed on the arbitration hearing list, a case stays there until an award is filed, the case is dismissed, or a judge restores it to the civil active list. Within fifteen days of assignment, the Arbitration Administrator mails each side a list of three prospective arbitrators, and each side has ten days to reject one name.⁸

Parties assigned to judicial arbitration can opt for mediation instead by filing a stipulation and choosing their own mediator, who does not need to be an attorney. Electing mediation does not pause any statutory or rule-based deadlines. Parties can also agree to submit any civil matter to binding or non-binding private arbitration.⁸

Settlement conferences are mandatory in unlawful detainer cases where a party has demanded a jury. In other cases, the Presiding Judge has discretion to order a mandatory settlement conference.⁸

Remote and In-Person Appearances

San Francisco allows remote appearances broadly. For law and motion hearings, parties may appear remotely unless the judicial officer expressly denies permission. Telephone appearances must be arranged through CourtCall at 1-888-88-COURT.⁸

Discovery hearings and law and motion hearings in Departments 301 and 302 allow attorneys and parties to appear by Zoom or in person. Ex parte hearings in those departments are CourtCall only, with no in-person appearances permitted.¹³ Individual departments set their own protocols. Department 613, for example, allows counsel to appear by Zoom but requires advance email notice to the clerk at least one court day before the hearing, listing who will appear in person and who will appear remotely.¹⁴ Check the court’s website or contact the clerk for the department handling your case before you rely on any appearance format.

Filing Under Seal

Sensitive filings are governed by California Rules of Court Rule 2.551. You cannot file a document under seal without a court order, and a stipulation between the parties is not enough on its own. You must file a motion or application to seal, supported by a memorandum and a declaration explaining why sealing is justified.¹⁵

The unredacted document is lodged with the court and kept conditionally under seal while the motion is pending. All parties who have appeared must be served with the motion. Parties who already have access to the material get both an unredacted and a redacted version; everyone else receives only the redacted copy. If a party producing documents subject to a protective order does not move to seal within ten days of receiving notice that the documents will go into the public file, the clerk transfers the unredacted documents into the public record.¹⁵

What Noncompliance Costs

The local rules carry statutory penalties. If you fail to comply, the court can strike your pleadings, dismiss part or all of your case, enter a default judgment against you, or impose lesser penalties along with an order to pay the other side’s expenses and attorney fees. No penalty can be imposed without notice and an opportunity to be heard. If the noncompliance is the attorney’s fault rather than the party’s, the penalty falls on the attorney and cannot harm the client’s claims or defenses.¹⁶ The best protection is to read the rule that governs your next filing before you make it, and to confirm you are working from the version currently in effect.

1
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. San Francisco Local Rules of Court
2
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. E-Filing
3
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. E-Filing FAQs
4
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Civil Clerk’s Office
5
Superior Court of California. Local Forms
6
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Initial Filing Fees in Civil Cases
7
Superior Court of California. Civil Case Management
8
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Uniform Local Rules of Court
9
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Uniform Local Rules of Court
10
Judicial Branch of California. Rule 3.724 Duty to Meet and Confer
11
California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 631
12
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Uniform Local Rules of Court
13
Superior Court of California. Law and Motion and Discovery
14
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. Department 613 Procedures
15
Judicial Branch of California. Rule 2.551 Procedures for Filing Records Under Seal
16
California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 575.2