(a) Proof of service Except as otherwise provided in the rules in this chapter, all papers filed or submitted must be accompanied by proof of prior service on all other parties to the coordination proceeding, including all parties appearing in all included actions and coordinated actions. Service and proof of such service must be made as provided for in civil actions generally. (Subd (a) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005; adopted as part of unlettered subd effective January 1, 1974.)
Rule 3.510.Service of papers
Division 4. Parties and Actions · Chapter 7. Coordination of Complex Actions · Article 2. Procedural Rules Applicable to All Complex Coordination Proceedings · Last amended 2007 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.510 requires proof of prior service on all other parties before a paper filed or submitted in a coordination proceeding is complete, allows service on a party's liaison counsel to stand in for service on that party, and provides that a failure to serve does not block coordination but may support a request for relief by the party that was not served.
Full Text of Rule 3.510
(b) Service on liaison counsel Except as provided in rule 3.506(c), any party for whom liaison counsel has been designated may be served by serving the liaison counsel. (Subd (b) amended effective January 1, 2007; adopted as part of unlettered subd effective January 1, 1974; previously amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005.)
(c) Effect of failure to serve Failure to serve any defendant with a copy of the summons and of the complaint, or failure to serve any party with any other paper or order as required by the rules in this chapter, will not preclude the coordination of the actions, but the unserved defendant or party may assert the failure to serve as a basis for appropriate relief. (Subd (c) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005; adopted as part of unlettered subd effective January 1, 1974.)
Plain-English Summary
Subdivision (a) sets the baseline: nearly everything filed or submitted in a coordination proceeding must be accompanied by proof that it was already served on every other party to the proceeding, across all included and coordinated actions, using the service methods that apply to civil actions generally. With parties spread across multiple courts and multiple original cases, that shared proof-of-service requirement keeps everyone working from the same information at the same time.
Subdivision (b) eases the burden that requirement could otherwise create. Once liaison counsel has been designated for a party under rule 3.506, serving that liaison counsel is enough to serve the party, except where rule 3.506(c) requires direct service because the party filed a written request for special notice.
Subdivision (c) addresses what happens when service goes wrong. A failure to serve a defendant with the summons and complaint, or a failure to serve any party with another required paper or order, does not by itself stand in the way of coordinating the actions. The party that was not served keeps its remedy: it may raise that failure as a basis for appropriate relief later on, rather than losing the point because the coordination proceeded without it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must every paper filed in a coordination proceeding include proof of service?
Yes, except as otherwise provided in this chapter, using the service and proof-of-service methods that apply to civil actions generally.
Can a party be served by serving its liaison counsel instead?
Yes, unless rule 3.506(c) requires direct service because that party filed a written request for special notice.
Does a failure to serve a party stop the actions from being coordinated?
No. Coordination may proceed despite the failure, but the unserved party may assert the failure to serve as a basis for appropriate relief.
Amendment History
Rule 3.510 amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; adopted as rule 1510 effective January 1, 1974; previously amended effective January 1, 2005.)
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: service of papers coordination proceeding californiacal rule of court 3.510 proof of serviceserving liaison counsel complex case californiaeffect of failure to serve coordinated action