In cases governed by the rules in this chapter, unless otherwise ordered by the court, the procedures described in Public Resources Code section 21167.8, including the filing of a statement of issues, are deemed to have been met by the parties addressing the potential for settlement and narrowing of issues within the case management conference statement and discussing those points as part of the case management conference.
Rule 3.2230.Settlement procedures and statement of issues
Division 22. Petitions Under the California Environmental Quality Act · Chapter 2. California Environmental Quality Act Proceedings Involving Streamlined CEQA Projects · Article 1. General Provisions · Adopted 2014 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.2230 lets the parties satisfy the settlement-conference and statement-of-issues procedures that Public Resources Code section 21167.8 would otherwise require by addressing settlement prospects and narrowing issues in the case management conference statement and discussing them at the conference itself, unless the court orders a separate process.
Full Text of Rule 3.2230
Plain-English Summary
CEQA’s general judicial-review statute pushes parties toward settlement through a specific mechanism — a statement of issues and a settlement meeting under Public Resources Code section 21167.8. Rule 3.2230 folds that mechanism into the machinery this chapter already builds around the case management conference, rather than layering on a separate procedural step.
Instead of a standalone settlement conference and a separate statement of issues, the parties get credit for covering the same ground inside the joint case management conference statement and the conference discussion Rule 3.2226 already requires. Address the potential for settlement and the narrowing of issues there, and the statute’s requirement is treated as satisfied — one less filing, one less meeting, without losing the substance the statute is after.
The court can always decide a case needs the separate process instead, and when it orders that, the shortcut in Rule 3.2230 no longer applies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do parties in a streamlined CEQA case need a separate settlement conference under Public Resources Code section 21167.8?
Not automatically. Rule 3.2230 lets the case management conference statement and conference discussion satisfy that requirement, unless the court orders a separate settlement process.
How do parties address settlement under Rule 3.2230?
By covering the potential for settlement and narrowing of issues in the joint case management conference statement and discussing those points at the conference itself.
Amendment History
Rule 3.2230 adopted effective July 1, 2014.
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: CEQA statement of issues requirement Californiasettlement conference streamlined CEQA casePublic Resources Code 21167.8 rule of court