All of the following are deemed excepted to: the verdict of the jury; the final decision in an action or proceeding; an interlocutory order or decision, finally determining the rights of the parties, or some of them; an order or decision from which an appeal may be taken; an order sustaining or overruling a demurrer, allowing or refusing to allow an amendment to a pleading, striking out or refusing to strike out a pleading or a portion thereof, or refusing a continuance; an order made upon ex parte application, giving an instruction, refusing to give an instruction, or modifying an instruction requested; an order or decision made in the absence of the party or an order granting or denying a nonsuit or a motion to strike out evidence or testimony; a ruling sustaining or overruling an objection to evidence; and any statement or other action of the court in commenting upon or in summarizing the evidence. If the party, at the time when the order, ruling, action or decision is sought or made, or within a reasonable time thereafter, makes known his position thereon, by objection or otherwise, all other orders, rulings, actions or decisions are deemed to have been excepted to.
§ 647.Deemed Excepted to
Title 8. Of the Trial and Judgment In Civil Actions · Chapter 7. Provisions Relating to Trials in General · Article 1. Exceptions · Last amended 1963 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 647 lists rulings and events — including jury verdicts, final decisions, and rulings on evidence or instructions — that are automatically deemed excepted to without a formal objection, and extends that same automatic protection to any other ruling a party made known its position on at the time.
Full Text of § 647
Plain-English Summary
Section 646 says an exception must be voiced when the ruling happens. Section 647 relieves parties of that burden for a long list of common rulings: a jury verdict; the final decision in an action; an interlocutory order finally determining some or all of the parties' rights; an order or decision from which an appeal may be taken; rulings on demurrers, pleading amendments, motions to strike, and continuances; orders made on ex parte application; giving, refusing, or modifying a jury instruction; an order or decision made in a party's absence; a nonsuit or a motion to strike evidence or testimony; a ruling on an evidentiary objection; and any comment or summary the court gives the jury about the evidence.
None of those require a party to stand up and object on the spot — they're deemed excepted to by operation of the statute itself.
The last sentence is a catch-all. For any other order, ruling, action, or decision not on the list, all a party has to do is make known its position — by objection or otherwise — at the time or within a reasonable time afterward, and that too is deemed excepted to.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to formally object to a jury verdict to preserve it for appeal?
No. Section 647 deems the verdict of the jury automatically excepted to.
What about rulings on evidence?
Rulings sustaining or overruling an objection to evidence are also automatically deemed excepted to.
What if the ruling I want to challenge isn't on the § 647 list?
It's still deemed excepted to as long as the party made known its position, by objection or otherwise, at the time or within a reasonable time afterward.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats. 1963, Ch. 99.
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: automatic exception californiadeemed excepted to meaning