When the sheriff is a party to an action or proceeding, the process and orders therein, which it would otherwise be the duty of the sheriff to execute, shall be executed by the coroner of the county.
§ 262.6.Execution of process and orders by coroner
Title 4. Ministerial Officers of Courts of Justice · Chapter 1. Of Ministerial Officers Generally · Enacted 1951 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentence§ 262.6 transfers the sheriff’s usual duty to execute process and orders in a case to the county coroner whenever the sheriff is a party to that action or proceeding.
Full Text of § 262.6
Plain-English Summary
A sheriff cannot execute process against, or on behalf of, a case in which the sheriff is a party. § 262.6 solves that conflict by handing the job to the county coroner instead, whenever the sheriff is a party to the action or proceeding.
The substitution is automatic and limited to the specific case where the sheriff’s own interest is at stake — it does not touch the sheriff’s ordinary duties in every other matter, only the process and orders in that particular action or proceeding.
This section sets up the rest of the chapter’s conflict-of-interest scheme: § 262.7 governs service of process in an action against the sheriff, and § 262.8 provides for appointment of an elisor when the coroner, too, is disqualified or unavailable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why would the coroner execute a writ instead of the sheriff?
§ 262.6 requires it whenever the sheriff is a party to the action, so the sheriff never has to execute process against, or for, a case involving the sheriff personally.
Does this rule apply to every county?
The section names “the coroner of the county” without limiting the rule to particular counties.
What if the coroner is also a party or disqualified?
§ 262.8 allows the court to appoint an elisor when both the sheriff and coroner are parties or otherwise disqualified.
Does this shift compensation duties as well as the work?
§ 262.10 sets compensation for coroners and elisors who perform this substitute role.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1951 ch 655 § 14.
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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