Rule 3.501.Definitions

Division 4. Parties and Actions · Chapter 7. Coordination of Complex Actions · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 2016 · Last verified July 29, 2026

In one sentenceRule 3.501 defines the vocabulary used throughout the complex-action coordination rules in chapter 7 — including coordinated action, coordination motion judge, coordination trial judge, add-on case, liaison counsel, and side — that govern how related complex cases filed in different California courts get coordinated.

Full Text of Rule 3.501

Text sizeJump to: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19)

As used in this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:

(1) “Action” means any civil action or proceeding that is subject to coordination or that affects an action subject to coordination.

(2) “Add-on case” means an action that is proposed for coordination, under Code of Civil Procedure section 404.4, with actions previously ordered coordinated.

(3) “Assigned judge” means any judge assigned by the Chair of the Judicial Council or by a presiding judge authorized by the Chair of the Judicial Council to assign a judge under Code of Civil Procedure section 404 or 404.3, including a “coordination motion judge” and a “coordination trial judge.”

(4) “Clerk,” unless otherwise indicated, means any person designated by an assigned judge to perform any clerical duties required by the rules in this chapter.

(5) “Coordinated action” means any action that has been ordered coordinated with one or more other actions under chapter 3 (commencing with section 404) of title 4 of part 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure and the rules in this chapter.

(6) “Coordination attorney” means an attorney with the Judicial Council staff appointed by the Chair of the Judicial Council to perform such administrative functions as may be appropriate under the rules in this chapter, including but not limited to the functions described in rules 3.524 and 3.550.

(7) “Coordination motion judge” means an assigned judge designated under Code of Civil Procedure section 404 to determine whether coordination is appropriate.

(8) “Coordination proceeding” means any procedure authorized by chapter 3 (commencing with section 404) of title 4 of part 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure and by the rules in this chapter.

(9) “Coordination trial judge” means an assigned judge designated under Code of Civil Procedure section 404.3 to hear and determine coordinated actions.

(10) “Expenses” means all necessary costs that are reimbursable under Code of Civil Procedure section 404.8, including the compensation of the assigned judge and other necessary judicial officers and employees, the costs of any necessary travel and subsistence determined under rules of the State Board of Control, and all necessarily incurred costs of facilities, supplies, materials, and telephone and mailing expenses.

(11) “Included action” means any action or proceeding included in a petition for coordination.

(12) “Liaison counsel” means an attorney of record for a party to an included action or a coordinated action who has been appointed by an assigned judge to serve as representative of all parties on a side with the following powers and duties, as appropriate:

(A) To receive on behalf of and promptly distribute to the parties for whom he or she acts all notices and other documents from the court;

(B) To act as spokesperson for the side that he or she represents at all proceedings set on notice before trial, subject to the right of each party to present individual or divergent positions; and

(13) “Party” includes all parties to all included actions or coordinated actions, and the word “party,” “petitioner,” or any other designation of a party includes that party’s attorney of record. When a notice or other paper is required to be given or served on a party, the notice or paper must be given to or served on the party’s attorney of record, if any.

(14) “Petition for coordination” means any petition, motion, application, or request for coordination of actions submitted to the Chair of the Judicial Council or to a coordination trial judge under rule 3.544.

(15) “Remand” means to return a coordinated action or a severable claim or issue in a coordinated action from a coordination proceeding to the court in which the action was pending at the time the coordination of that action was ordered. If a remanded action or claim had been transferred by the coordination trial judge under rule 3.543 from the court in which the remanded action or claim was pending, the remand must include the retransfer of that action or claim to that court.

(16) “Serve and file” means that a paper filed in a court must be accompanied by proof of prior service of a copy of the paper on each party required to be served under the rules in this chapter.

(17) “Serve and submit” means that a paper to be submitted to an assigned judge under the rules in this chapter must be submitted to that judge at a designated court address. Every paper so submitted must be accompanied by proof of prior service on each party required to be served under the rules in this chapter. If there is no assigned judge or if the paper is of a type included in rule 3.511(a), the paper must be submitted to the Chair of the Judicial Council.

(18) “Side” means all parties to an included or a coordinated action who have a common or substantially similar interest in the issues, as determined by the assigned judge for the purpose of appointing liaison counsel or of allotting peremptory challenges in jury selection, or for any other appropriate purpose. Except as defined in rule 3.515, a side may include less than all plaintiffs or all defendants.

(19) “Transfer” means to remove a coordinated action or severable claim in that action from the court in which it is pending to any other court under rule 3.543, without removing the action or claim from the coordination proceeding. “Transfer” includes “retransfer.”

Plain-English Summary

Coordinating complex cases across multiple courts involves its own specialized cast of roles and procedures, and Rule 3.501 supplies the shared vocabulary the rest of the chapter relies on. It distinguishes the judge who decides whether coordination should happen at all — the coordination motion judge, appointed under Code of Civil Procedure section 404 — from the coordination trial judge who presides once cases are coordinated, appointed under section 404.3. It defines a coordinated action as a case formally ordered coordinated with others, an included action as one named in a coordination petition, and an add-on case as a later action proposed for coordination with cases already coordinated under section 404.4.

Other terms describe how coordinated litigation runs day to day. Liaison counsel represents a whole "side" of the case — which can mean less than every plaintiff or every defendant — receiving and distributing court notices, speaking for the group at proceedings, and calling meetings among counsel. "Transfer" and "remand" describe moving a coordinated action or claim between courts, while "expenses" defines the costs, reimbursable under section 404.8, that come with running a coordination proceeding, from judicial compensation to travel and mailing costs. Because these words carry a specific, defined meaning inside chapter 7, understanding them is the starting point for making sense of every rule that follows in the coordination process.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a coordination motion judge and a coordination trial judge?

Rule 3.501 defines the coordination motion judge as the judge, assigned under Code of Civil Procedure section 404, who decides whether coordination is appropriate, while the coordination trial judge, assigned under section 404.3, is the one who hears and decides the coordinated actions.

What is an 'add-on case' in a coordination proceeding?

It is an action proposed for coordination, under Code of Civil Procedure section 404.4, with actions that have already been ordered coordinated.

What does liaison counsel do in a coordinated action?

Liaison counsel is an attorney appointed to represent a side of the case, receiving and distributing court notices, speaking for that side at proceedings, and calling meetings of counsel to propose joint action.

Can a 'side' in a coordinated action mean less than all the plaintiffs or defendants?

Yes. Rule 3.501(18) allows a side to include less than all plaintiffs or all defendants, based on the assigned judge's determination of common or similar interests.

What counts as 'expenses' in a coordination proceeding?

Rule 3.501(10) defines expenses as the necessary costs reimbursable under Code of Civil Procedure section 404.8, including judicial compensation, travel and subsistence, and the costs of facilities, supplies, and mailing.

Amendment History

Rule 3.501 amended effective January 1, 2016; adopted as rule 1501 effective January 1, 1974; previously amended effective July 1, 1974, and January 1, 2005; previously amended and renumbered as rule 3.501 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

Also known as: coordination motion judge definition californiawhat is liaison counsel california coordinationrule 3.501 add-on case definitioncomplex case coordination terms california