(a) Coordination trial judge may terminate action The coordination trial judge may terminate any coordinated action by settlement or final dismissal, summary judgment, or judgment, or may transfer the action so that it may be dismissed or otherwise terminated in the court where it was pending when coordination was ordered. (Subd (a) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005; adopted as part of unlettered subd.)
Rule 3.545.Termination of coordinated action
Division 4. Parties and Actions · Chapter 7. Coordination of Complex Actions · Article 4. Pretrial and Trial Rules for Complex Coordinated Actions · Last amended 2025 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.545 lets the coordination trial judge end a single coordinated action through settlement, dismissal, summary judgment, or judgment, or by transferring it back for termination in its original court, and sets out how the resulting order and judgment get filed and captioned, and which court handles later proceedings until the judgment becomes final.
Full Text of Rule 3.545
(b) Copies of order dismissing or terminating action and judgment A certified copy of the order dismissing or terminating the action and of any judgment must be transmitted by the prevailing party (or by plaintiff in the case of a settlement or if there is no prevailing party) to:
(1) The clerk of the court in which the action was pending when coordination was ordered, who must promptly enter any judgment and serve notice of entry of the judgment on all parties to the action and on the Chair of the Judicial Council; and
(2) The appropriate clerks for filing in each pending coordinated action. (Subd (b) amended effective July 1, 2025; adopted as part of unlettered subd; amended and lettered effectively January 1, 2005.)
(c) Judgment in coordinated action The judgment entered in each coordinated action must bear the title and case number assigned to the action at the time it was filed and also identify, in the caption, the superior court in which the action was originally filed. (Subd (c) amended July 1, 2025; adopted as part of unlettered subd; amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005.)
(d) Proceedings in trial court after judgment Until the judgment in a coordinated action becomes final or until a coordinated action is remanded, all further proceedings in that action to be determined by the trial court must be determined by the coordination trial judge. Thereafter, unless otherwise ordered by the coordination trial judge, all such proceedings must be conducted in the court where the action was pending when coordination was ordered. The coordination trial judge must also specify the court in which any ancillary proceedings will be heard and determined. For purposes of this rule, a judgment is final when it is no longer subject to appeal. (Subd (d) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2005; adopted as part of unlettered subd.)
Plain-English Summary
A coordinated action can wind down on its own even while the larger coordination proceeding continues around it. Rule 3.545 lets the coordination trial judge end that single action outright — through settlement, final dismissal, summary judgment, or judgment — or transfer it so the case can be dismissed or otherwise resolved in the court where it was pending before coordination began.
Once an action ends, the paper trail has to reach everyone with a stake in it. The prevailing party — or the plaintiff, if the case settled or no side clearly prevailed — sends a certified copy of the dismissal or termination order, and of any judgment, to the clerk of the court where the action was originally pending, who enters judgment and notifies every party and the Chair of the Judicial Council, and to the clerks handling every other pending coordinated action. The judgment itself keeps the title and case number the action carried when it was first filed, and its caption still identifies the superior court where the case originated.
Ending an action does not immediately hand it back to its home court. Until the judgment becomes final, meaning it is no longer subject to appeal, or the action is remanded, the coordination trial judge keeps deciding whatever comes up in that case. After that point, proceedings shift to the court where the action was pending before coordination, unless the trial judge orders otherwise, and the trial judge also has to say which court will handle any related ancillary proceedings.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can the coordination trial judge end one coordinated action?
By settlement, final dismissal, summary judgment, or judgment, or by transferring the action so it can be dismissed or otherwise terminated in the court where it was pending before coordination.
Who sends the copies of the termination order and judgment?
The prevailing party, or the plaintiff if the case settled or no party clearly prevailed.
What does the judgment in a coordinated action have to show?
The title and case number assigned when the action was first filed, and, in the caption, the superior court where the action was originally filed.
Which court handles later proceedings in the action once judgment is entered?
The coordination trial judge, until the judgment becomes final or the action is remanded; after that, the court where the action was pending when coordination was ordered, unless the trial judge orders otherwise.
Amendment History
Rule 3.545 amended effective July 1, 2025; adopted as rule 1545 effective January 1, 1974; previously amended effective January 1, 2005; previously renumbered 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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