§ 402.Location Specified By Local Rule of Superior Court
Title 4. Of the Place of Trial, Reclassification, and Coordination of Civil Actions · Chapter 1. Place of Trial · Enacted 2002 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentence§ 402 lets a superior court designate by local rule which of its own courthouse locations handle particular kinds of cases, but bars dismissing a case or rejecting a filing merely because it landed at the wrong location within the county.
(1)A superior court may specify by local rule the locations where certain types of actions or proceedings are to be filed.
(2)A superior court may specify by local rule the locations where certain types of actions or proceedings are to be heard or tried.
(3)A superior court may not dismiss a case, and the clerk may not reject a case for filing, because it is filed, or a person seeks to file it, in a court location other than the location specified by local rule. However, the court may transfer the case on its own motion to the proper court location.
(b)A superior court may transfer an action or proceeding filed in one location to another location of the superior court. This section does not affect the authority of the presiding judge to apportion the business of the court as provided by the California Rules of Court.
Plain-English Summary
Large counties often run more than one courthouse. § 402(a) lets a superior court specify by local rule which locations handle filing, and which handle hearings or trials, for certain types of cases. But the fix for a case filed at the wrong location is a transfer, not a dismissal: the court may not dismiss the case, and the clerk may not reject the filing, solely because it went to the wrong in-county location -- though the court may transfer it on its own motion.
Subdivision (b) confirms the court may also transfer a case between its own locations, without disturbing the presiding judge's separate authority to apportion the court's business under the California Rules of Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my case be thrown out for filing at the wrong courthouse within the same county?
No -- § 402 lets the court transfer it to the correct location, but bars dismissing the case or rejecting the filing on that basis alone.
Does this section deal with which county to sue in?
No -- it governs which courthouse location within a single superior court handles a case, a different question from the county-level venue rules elsewhere in this title.
Amendment History
Added by Stats 2002 ch 806 (AB 3027),s 12, eff. 1/1/2003.
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
Also known as:which courthouse to file lawsuit californialocal court rule filing location california