Process or orders in an action or proceeding may be executed by a person residing in the county, designated by the court, or the judge thereof, and denominated an elisor, in the following cases:
§ 262.8.Execution of process and orders by elisor
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§ 262.8 authorizes a court to appoint a county resident as an elisor to execute process or orders when both the sheriff and coroner are parties, when one is a party and the process runs against the other, or when one is a party and the other is disqualified, has a vacant office, or would not act promptly or impartially.
Full Text of § 262.8
(a) When the sheriff and coroner are both parties.
(b) When either of these officers is a party, and the process is against the other.
(c) When either of these officers is a party, and there is a vacancy in the office of the other, or where it appears, by affidavit, to the satisfaction of the court in which the proceeding is pending, or the judge thereof, that both of these officers are disqualified, or by reason of any bias, prejudice, or other cause would not act promptly or impartially.
Plain-English Summary
Sometimes neither of the officers who would normally handle a case — the sheriff or, under § 262.6, the coroner — can be trusted to act. § 262.8 provides the final backstop: a court, or the judge, may designate a person residing in the county as an elisor to execute process or orders in the case.
The section lists three situations where an elisor becomes necessary: the sheriff and coroner are both parties; one of them is a party and the process runs against the other; or one is a party and the other’s office is vacant, or that officer is shown by affidavit to be disqualified, biased, prejudiced, or otherwise unlikely to act promptly or impartially.
An elisor is not a permanent office. The appointment is specific to the case and the person designated must reside in the county where the process is to be executed, giving the court a locally available substitute when the ordinary chain of ministerial officers breaks down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an elisor under California law?
§ 262.8 defines an elisor as a person residing in the county whom a court, or the judge, designates to execute process or orders when neither the sheriff nor the coroner can properly do so.
When can a court appoint an elisor?
When the sheriff and coroner are both parties, when one is a party and the process runs against the other, or when one is a party and the other is disqualified, has a vacant office, or would not act promptly or impartially.
How does a court decide the coroner is too biased to act?
§ 262.8(c) requires an affidavit showing bias, prejudice, or other cause, to the satisfaction of the court or judge.
Does the elisor have to live in a particular place?
Yes. § 262.8 requires the elisor to be a person residing in the county.
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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