(a) Fields occupied The Judicial Council has preempted all local rules relating to pleadings, demurrers, ex parte applications, motions, discovery, provisional remedies, and the form and format of papers. No trial court, or any division or branch of a trial court, may enact or enforce any local rule concerning these fields. All local rules concerning these fields are null and void unless otherwise permitted or required by a statute or a rule in the California Rules of Court. (Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2007; adopted as untitled subd effective July 1, 1997; previously amended effective July 1, 2000.)
Rule 3.20.Preemption of local rules
Division 1. General Provisions · Chapter 2. Scope of the Civil Rules · Last amended 2015 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.20 strips superior courts of authority to adopt local rules on pleadings, demurrers, ex parte applications, motions, discovery, provisional remedies, and the format of papers, subject to listed exceptions for trial proceedings, certain statutory matters, eminent domain, and delay-reduction rules.
Full Text of Rule 3.20
(b) Application This rule applies to all matters identified in (a) except:
(1) Trial and post-trial proceedings including but not limited to motions in limine (see rule 3.1112(f));
(2) Proceedings under Code of Civil Procedure sections 527.6, 527.7, and 527.8; the Family Code; the Probate Code; the Welfare and Institutions Code; and the Penal Code and all other criminal proceedings;
(3) Eminent domain proceedings; and
(4) Local court rules adopted under the Trial Court Delay Reduction Act. (Subd (b) amended effective January 1, 2015; adopted effective July 1, 2000; previously amended effective July 1, 2000, January 1, 2002, and January 1, 2007.)
Plain-English Summary
Rule 3.20 is a statewide uniformity rule. Before it and its predecessors took hold, individual superior courts — and sometimes individual branches of the same court — wrote their own local rules on how to plead a case, bring a motion, or format a filing. An attorney practicing in more than one county had to track a patchwork of local requirements layered on top of the statewide rules.
The rule ends that patchwork for a defined list of subjects: pleadings, demurrers, ex parte applications, motions, discovery, provisional remedies, and the form and format of papers. The Judicial Council has claimed those fields entirely for itself. Any local rule a court adopts on one of them is null and void unless a statute or a California Rule of Court expressly permits or requires it.
The preemption is not absolute. Rule 3.20(b) carves out trial and post-trial proceedings, several categories of statutory proceedings including civil harassment and workplace violence restraining orders along with family, probate, juvenile, and criminal matters, eminent domain cases, and local rules adopted under the Trial Court Delay Reduction Act. In those areas, courts keep more room to set their own local procedures.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a California superior court write its own local rule on discovery or motions?
No, not for the subjects Rule 3.20 lists — pleadings, demurrers, ex parte applications, motions, discovery, provisional remedies, and paper format. The Judicial Council has occupied those fields, and local rules on them are void unless a statute or statewide rule permits them.
Are there exceptions to the preemption of local rules under Rule 3.20?
Yes. Rule 3.20(b) excludes trial and post-trial proceedings, several statutory proceedings including civil harassment and family law matters, eminent domain cases, and local rules adopted under the Trial Court Delay Reduction Act.
What happens to a local rule that violates Rule 3.20?
It is null and void. A local rule on a preempted subject has no legal effect unless a statute or a California Rule of Court specifically authorizes it.
Amendment History
Rule 3.20 amended effective January 1, 2015; adopted as rule 302 effective July 1, 1997; previously amended effective January 1, 2002; previously amended and renumbered as rule 981.1 effective July 1, 2000, and as rule 3.20 effective January 1, 2007.
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
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