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Sacramento Superior Court, CA
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Department 3B
Writ Departments and Protocols - Department 3B
The clerk of Department3B schedules hearings on writ petitions and motions addressing preliminary matters. Writ petitions and motions are normally heard in Department 3B on Fridays at 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Other times may be set with the court's approval upon a showing of good cause.
The moving party must reserve a date with the department clerk before noticing a hearing. Litigants should ordinarily communicate with the court via email rather than by phone. Please email the department for available dates and times, and then meet and confer with all parties to select a mutually convenient date and time. Then, please email the clerk to reserve the agreed-upon date and time.
Ex parte applications must comply with California Rules of Court, rule 3.1200 et seq. The court prefers at least 48 hours notice, but upon a showing of urgency, will accept less. Once the court reviews the ex parte application, it will inform the moving party whether a hearing will be held, and if so, the date. If applicable, the court may also instruct the moving party to inform all other parties of the date oppositions are due and the date of the hearing.
Notwithstanding the Court’s rules regarding e-Filing, parties shall deliver two hard copies of all motion briefings (merits and non-merits) to Department 3B on the same day that the briefs are filed. If the briefs are e-Filed on a weekend or court holiday, the hard copies shall be delivered to Department 3B the following court day.
Additionally, at the time of filing any document, parties are directed to Department 3B a courtesy copy as a PDF to the Department 3B. Emailing the courtesy copy will not be considered filing.
The administrative record shall be filed with the clerk of Department 3B no more than 25 days before the hearing date. If the record is more than 500 pages, please email the clerk in Department 3B for directions.
If documents are filed within a day of the hearing, an endorsed copy shall be delivered to Department 3B. (Local Rule 2.26(c).)
In most cases, Department 3B uses the Tentative Ruling System. On the court day before each hearing, the court will post either a tentative ruling or a direction that the parties appear at the hearing.
The tentative ruling or direction to appear at the hearing will be available at 2 p.m. the day before and may be obtained on this Public Portal. For those without access to the Internet, a copy of the tentative ruling or direction to appear may be obtained from the clerk of Department 3B.
A tentative ruling shall become the ruling of the court, unless a party contacts the Department 3B clerk to request a hearing no later than 4 p.m. on the court day preceding the hearing and further advises the clerk that the party requesting the hearing has notified all other parties of its request and intention to appear. If no hearing is requested, the tentative ruling will become the ruling of the court without a hearing.
All notices of motions or hearings shall include the following information in the notice: "Pursuant to Local Rule 1.06, the court will make a tentative ruling on this matter by 2 p.m., the court day before the hearing. You can access any tentative ruling on the court's website at www.saccourt.ca.gov or obtain the tentative ruling from the clerk of Department 3B. If the court issues a tentative ruling and you do not call the court and the opposing party by 4 p.m. on the court day before the hearing date to request a hearing, no hearing will be held."
Parties may, if they choose, appear remotely at conferences, hearings, and proceedings using the court’s Zoom link with notice to the court and all other parties in accordance with Code of Civil Procedure § 367.75.
The parties may join the Zoom session for the hearing on the tentative ruling by audio and/or video through the following link:
- Join Department 3B by Zoom link
- To join by phone, dial (833) 568-8864 and enter ID 160 1190 6537
The parties must meet and confer as to both the hearing date and the substance of any motion. The moving party shall include a declaration attesting to this with any motion.
Absent a showing of good cause or waiver by the responding party, no alternative writ will be issued unless the moving party serves all parties with the application at least five days before the ex parte hearing.
An alternative writ merely places the matter on the court's calendar. It does not stay any action or afford any affirmative relief. If issued, the alternative writ must be served in the same manner as a summons in a civil action unless the court orders otherwise. (Refer to Code Civ. Proc., §1073.) The court will set a briefing schedule when the alternative writ is issued.
The court prefers that parties use a notice of hearing instead of seeking issuance of an alternative writ to place the matter on calendar. (Refer to page 7 of the Writ of Mandate Guide.)
Administrative records must be lodged directly with the department not less than 25 days, nor more than 45 days, before the hearing. Parties should attach a cover sheet to the administrative record (and any boxes containing the record) listing the case name, case number, and the date and time of the hearing. When securing a date and time for a hearing on the merits of the petition, parties should inform the clerk of the size of the administrative record.
If the administrative record is voluminous (if it fills three or more large three-ring binders or exceeds 750 pages), parties are directed to lodge, in addition to the original administrative record, an electronic copy of the record. The electronic copy must be:
- in PDF format (or other format in general use);
- divided into a series of electronic files and include electronic bookmarks that identify each part of the record and clearly state the volume and page numbers contained in each part of the record;
- capable of full text searching; and
- contained on a CD-ROM, DVD, or USB flash drive, labeled with the case name, case number, and title of the document.
The department generally prefers the electronic copy to be submitted on a USB flash drive. Parties should consult with the clerk if they are unable to comply with any of these requirements.
Effective August 21, 2023, the caption page of the first pleading in any case that alleges one or more claims pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Pub. Res. Code, §§ 21000, et seq.) shall clearly identify that the case is a CEQA case. The words “CEQA case” must appear on the caption page.
Additionally, if the CEQA claim relates to an infrastructure project governed by Public Resources Code sections 21189.80 et seq., the caption page must also state the code sections under which the CEQA cause of action is litigated and state “EXPEDITED REVIEW.”
At the time the pleading is filed, the person presenting the pleading for filing must notify the clerk processing the filing that the case is a CEQA case and, if warranted, that it is entitled to expedited review under Public Resources Code section 21189.85. Once a notice of case assignment is generated, the petitioner must immediately deliver a courtesy copy of the pleading to the assigned department and contact the department clerk regarding scheduling a case management.
Once a hearing or motion is set on the calendar, it may be continued only upon order of the court. A party requesting a continuance should obtain available dates and times from the clerk of Department 3B, meet and confer with all parties on a new date, and then present either a Stipulation and Proposed Order or, if opposing parties are unwilling to stipulate, a motion and proposed order for a continuance. Applicable filing fees shall be paid at the Civil Front Counter.
Proof of service of the alternative writ or, if no alternative writ is sought, proof of service of the filed petition, must be filed with the court prior to any hearing on an application for issuance of a temporary stay, temporary restraining order, or preliminary injunction.
Objections to evidence must comply with California Rules of Court rule 3.1352 and rule 3.1354.