(a) Methods of presentation Upon agreement of the parties and with the approval of the judicial officer, the parties may present summaries and may use photographs, diagrams, slides, electronic presentations, overhead projections, individual notebooks of exhibits for submission to the jurors, or other innovative methods of presentation approved at the pretrial conference.
Rule 3.1551.Case presentation
Division 15. Trial · Chapter 4.5. Expedited Jury Trials · Article 4. Rules Applicable to All Expedited Jury Trials · Last amended 2016 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.1551 lets parties present their expedited jury trial case through summaries and visual aids like photographs, slides, or exhibit notebooks if both sides agree and the judicial officer approves, requires anything used in the case-in-chief to be exchanged 20 days before trial, and encourages broad factual stipulations.
Full Text of Rule 3.1551
(b) Exchange of items Anything to be submitted to the jury under (a) as part of the evidentiary presentation of the case in chief must be exchanged 20 days in advance of the trial, unless that period is modified by the consent order or agreement of the parties. This rule does not apply to items to be used solely for closing argument. (Subd (b) amended effective July 1, 2016.)
(c) Stipulations regarding facts The parties should stipulate to factual and evidentiary matters to the greatest extent possible.
Plain-English Summary
A five-hour time budget forces parties to think about how they present evidence, not just what evidence they present. Rule 3.1551 opens the door to methods that would be unusual in a standard trial: with agreement between the parties and approval from the judicial officer, a side can present summaries instead of walking through every underlying document, and can use photographs, diagrams, slides, electronic presentations, overhead projections, or individual exhibit notebooks handed directly to jurors, along with any other approved innovative method.
Whatever gets used this way as part of the case-in-chief has to be exchanged with the other side 20 days before trial, unless the consent order or the parties’ agreement sets a different period — the same kind of advance-disclosure requirement that runs through the rest of the expedited jury trial rules, meant to avoid surprises during a trial too short to absorb them. That exchange requirement does not reach material intended solely for closing argument, which can still be developed without tipping it off in advance.
Rule 3.1551(c) closes with a broader instruction: parties should stipulate to factual and evidentiary matters as much as possible. In a trial built around five hours per side, every fact both sides can agree on is time neither side has to spend proving it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can parties use slides or photo exhibits instead of live testimony in an expedited jury trial?
Yes, with agreement between the parties and approval of the judicial officer. Rule 3.1551(a) allows summaries and methods like photographs, diagrams, slides, and exhibit notebooks.
When must case-in-chief presentation materials be exchanged before an expedited jury trial?
20 days before trial, unless the consent order or the parties’ agreement sets a different period, under Rule 3.1551(b). Material intended solely for closing argument is not covered.
Are parties expected to stipulate to facts in an expedited jury trial?
Yes. Rule 3.1551(c) directs the parties to stipulate to factual and evidentiary matters to the greatest extent possible.
Amendment History
Rule 3.1551 amended effective July 1, 2016; adopted effective January 1, 2011.
Source & verification. Rule text is reproduced verbatim from
the Judicial Council of California. Adopted by the Judicial Council of California.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: exhibit notebooks expedited jury trial Californiapresenting evidence in expedited jury trialCRC rule 3.1551 case presentation