(a) In any action by a candidate or former candidate for elective public office against a holder of elective public office or an opposing candidate for libel or slander that is alleged to have occurred during the course of an election campaign, the court shall order that the time to respond to the complaint is 20 days after the service of summons on the defendant. The order shall direct the clerk to endorse the summons to show that the time to respond has been shortened pursuant to this section. A copy of the affidavit and order shall be served with the summons.
§ 460.7.Order to Respond Shortened In Action By Candidate For Libel and Slander
Title 6. Of the Pleadings In Civil Actions · Chapter 7. General Rules of Pleading · Last amended 2007 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 460.7 requires a court to shorten the response time to 20 days after service in a libel or slander action a candidate or former candidate brings against an officeholder or opposing candidate over campaign statements, with the same 10-day answer cap as § 460.5.
Full Text of § 460.7
(c) The court shall give any action described in subdivision (a) precedence over all other civil actions, except actions to which special precedence is given by law, in the matter of the setting of the case of hearing or trial, and in hearing the case, to the end that all actions described in subdivision (a) shall be quickly heard and determined. Except for good cause shown, the court shall not grant a continuance in excess of 10 days without the consent of the adverse party.
Plain-English Summary
Section 460.7 targets a narrower, more urgent situation than § 460.5: a libel or slander action brought during an election campaign by a candidate or former candidate against a holder of elective public office or an opposing candidate. Because the timing of an election makes ordinary case schedules practically useless, the court must, not merely may, order that the time to respond to the complaint is 20 days after service of summons, with the clerk endorsing the summons accordingly and the order served along with it.
The rest of the section mirrors § 460.5: the defendant’s time to respond to the complaint, or amend the answer under § 586, is capped at 10 days absent a good-cause order otherwise, and the court must give the case scheduling precedence and limit continuances to 10 days without the adverse party’s consent.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is § 460.7 different from the general defamation speed-up rule in § 460.5?
Section 460.7 applies only to campaign-related libel or slander actions between a candidate or former candidate and an officeholder or opposing candidate, and it makes the 20-day shortened response time mandatory rather than discretionary.
Does the plaintiff have to file an ex parte application to get the shortened schedule under § 460.7?
The section itself does not condition the mandatory order on an ex parte application the way § 460.5 does; it directs the court to order the shortened time in any qualifying campaign defamation action.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2006 ch 538 (SB 1852),s 64, eff. 1/1/2007.
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: candidate defamation lawsuit californiaelection campaign libel expedited schedule