Background
The Sacramento Superior Court began its current Civil Settlement
Conference program in 1986 with a commitment from the bench that strong
efforts to settle civil cases were essential to good trial calendar
management. Space was rented in the building located directly across
9th Street from the Downtown Courthouse. With space secured, the Court
solicited Sacramento's leading civil attorneys, asking them to sit as
pro tem settlement conference judges, pro bono. Over the years, the
program has become one of the Court's most effective forms of
alternative dispute resolution, resulting in the settlement of
approximately 50% of the cases that complete their conferences.
Effective in March of 2001, the Civil Settlement Conference program
moved to more spacious quarters at 800 9th Street, first floor.
If you are interested in being considered to sit as a pro tem
settlement conference judge, please complete the
Pro Tem Application
and submit the completed application to the Settlement Conference
Program, 720 9th Street, Department 59 Sacramento, CA
95814. Your application will be reviewed by the judicial committee and
you will be notified of the status of your request.
The information below is designed to provide a quick overview of the
Settlement Conference process. Parties are encouraged to review Chapter
4 of the Court's Local Rules for a full description of the
requirements for cases scheduled for a conference.
Conference Scheduling
Cases are scheduled for a mandatory Settlement Conference at the time
of the setting of the trial date. These conferences are generally
scheduled for approximately two weeks prior to trial and are set Monday
through Thursday, at either 8:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m.
Parties may stipulate to a voluntary Settlement Conference at any
time simply by writing a letter of request to the Settlement Conference
Clerk, 720 Ninth Street, Sacramento, California, 95814. The
request must indicate that all parties agree to participate in the
conference. The clerk will then contact the parties to schedule a date
and time.
Settlement Conference Statement
Not less than ten days prior to the scheduled conference, each party
must submit an original and two copies of a
Settlement Conference
Statement. These documents are received by the court but do not become a
part of the permanent record (they are "received" stamped
rather than "filed" stamped). These statements assist the
pro tem settlement conference judge in understanding the details of the
case prior to the conference.
Attendance
Pursuant to Local Rule 4.01, all persons whose consent is required to
effect a binding settlement shall be personally present at the
settlement conference unless they have been excused from attendance by
the Presiding Judge. Such request for excuse must be made no less
than five court days prior to the scheduled conference, with a copy of
the request served on all parties.
Any person who has been excused from attendance must remain
immediately available by telephone throughout the
conference.
Continuing a Settlement Conference
Motions to continue a settlement conference and trial date are heard
by the Presiding Judge in Department 47. If the parties
wish,
however, they can stipulate to changing the date of their conference as long as they
remain within the two-week period before trial. Parties stipulating
to such a change may telephone the clerk in the Settlement
Conference Department at 916-874-8200.
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