(a) The appeal to the superior court shall consist of a new hearing before a judicial officer other than the judicial officer who heard the action in the small claims division.
§ 116.770.Appeal procedure
Title 1. Organization and Jurisdiction · Chapter 5.5. Small Claims Court · Article 7. Motion to Vacate, Appeal, and Related Matters · Last amended 2005 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 116.770 makes a small claims appeal an entirely new, informal hearing before a different judicial officer than the one who heard the case below, without discovery, jury trial, or a statement of decision, applying the small claims hearing rules of Article 5 except that attorneys may now participate.
Full Text of § 116.770
(b) The hearing on an appeal to the superior court shall be conducted informally. The pretrial discovery procedures described in Section 2019.010 are not permitted, no party has a right to a trial by jury, and no tentative decision or statement of decision is required.
(d) The scope of the hearing shall include the claims of all parties who were parties to the small claims action at the time the notice of appeal was filed. The hearing shall include the claim of a defendant that was heard in the small claims court.
(e) The clerk of the superior court shall schedule the hearing for the earliest available time and shall mail written notice of the hearing to the parties at least 14 days prior to the time set for the hearing.
(f) The Judicial Council may prescribe by rule the practice and procedure on appeal and the time and manner in which the record on appeal shall be prepared and filed.
Plain-English Summary
Section 116.770(a) defines what a small claims appeal is: not a review of the record below, but a brand-new hearing before a judicial officer other than the one who decided the case in the small claims division. Subdivision (b) keeps that new hearing informal — no pretrial discovery under § 2019.010, no jury trial, and no tentative decision or statement of decision required.
Subdivision (c) carries over Article 5’s small claims hearing rules (commencing with § 116.510) to the appeal, with one significant change: attorneys may now participate, unlike at the original small claims hearing under § 116.530. Subdivision (d) makes clear the appeal covers the claims of everyone who was a party when the notice of appeal was filed, including a defendant’s counterclaim that was heard below.
Subdivision (e) requires the superior court clerk to schedule the appeal hearing for the earliest available time and mail notice at least 14 days ahead, and subdivision (f) lets the Judicial Council set further rules on appeal practice, procedure, and the record on appeal.
Official Comment
The following official comments are published by the California Law Revision Commission (and, for a few older sections, its predecessor Code Commissioners) alongside the statute itself — not commentary from this site.
1998 Law Revision Commission Comment. Section 116.770 is amended to accommodate unification of the municipal and superior courts in a county. Cal. Const. art. VI, § 5(e).
2004 Law Revision Commission Comment. Subdivision (b) of Section 116.770 is amended to reflect nonsubstantive reorganization of the rules governing civil discovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a small claims appeal a new trial or a review of what happened below?
It is a new hearing. Section 116.770(a) requires a new hearing before a judicial officer other than the one who heard the case in the small claims division, not a review of the record.
Can I have a lawyer at my small claims appeal even though I couldn’t at the original hearing?
Yes. Section 116.770(c) applies the Article 5 hearing rules to the appeal except that attorneys may now participate.
Is there a jury or discovery at a small claims appeal?
No. Section 116.770(b) bars pretrial discovery and jury trial at the appeal hearing, and does not require a tentative decision or statement of decision.
How much advance notice do I get of my small claims appeal hearing?
Section 116.770(e) requires the superior court clerk to mail notice of the hearing at least 14 days before it.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1990 ch 1305 § 3 (SB 2627). Amended Stats 1991 ch 133 § 4 (AB 1827), ch 915 § 25 (SB 771); Stats 1992 ch 8 § 3 (AB 1551), effective February 19, 1992; Stats 1998 ch 931 § 42 (SB 2139), effective September 28, 1998; Stats 2004 ch 182 § 8 (AB 3081), operative July 1, 2005.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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