Article 1. General Provisions of California Government Code >> Title 8. >> Chapter 2. >> Article 1.

The Judicial Council may appoint and employ during its pleasure such officers, assistants, and other employees as it deems necessary for the performance of the duties and exercise of the powers conferred by law upon it and its members. It may determine the duties and fix and provide for the compensation of all such officers, assistants, and other employees.

The Judicial Council may prescribe the methods, means, and standards for electronic collection of data related to court administration, practice, and procedure.

The annual salary of the Administrative Director of the Courts shall be set by the chairperson of the Judicial Council and shall be no less than the salary of a judge of the court of appeal, and shall be paid out of appropriations for the support of the Judicial Council. The salary of a judge of a court of appeal means the salary of a judge first appointed to the court of appeal after January 1, 1982.

The chairman of the Judicial Council may appoint committees composed of official court reporters, judges, retired judges, attorneys and experts in specialized fields, or any combination thereof, to advise with the Judicial Council in studying the condition of business in the several courts and the means for simplifying and improving the administration of justice and in the performance of any other duties of the council authorized or imposed by law.

The committees may assemble information and make recommendations to the Judicial Council, but shall not exercise any of the powers vested in the council.

(a) The Judicial Council may, as part of its trial court budget process, seek input from groups and individuals as it deems appropriate including, but not limited to, advisory committees and the Administrative Director of the Courts. The trial court budget process may include, but is not limited to, the following:
  (1) The receipt of budget requests from the trial courts.
  (2) The review of the trial courts' budget requests and evaluate them against performance criteria established by the Judicial Council by which a court's performance, level of coordination, and efficiency can be measured.
  (3) The annual adoption of the projected cost in the subsequent fiscal year of court operations as defined in Section 77003 for each trial court. This estimation shall serve as a basis for recommended court budgets, which shall be developed for comparison purposes and to delineate funding responsibilities.
  (4) The annual approval of a schedule for the allocation of moneys to individual courts and an overall trial court budget for forwarding to the Governor for inclusion in the Governor's proposed State Budget. The schedule shall be based on the performance criteria established pursuant to paragraph (2), on a minimum standard established by the Judicial Council for the operation and staffing of all trial court operations, and on any other factors as determined by the Judicial Council. This minimum standard shall be modeled on court operations using all reasonable and available measures to increase court efficiency. The schedule of allocations shall assure that all trial courts receive funding for the minimum operating and staffing standards before funding operating and staffing requests above the minimum standards, and shall include incentives and rewards for any trial court's implementation of efficiencies and cost saving measures.
  (5) The reallocation of funds during the course of the fiscal year to ensure equal access to the trial courts by the public, to improve trial court operations, and to meet trial court emergencies. Neither the state nor the counties shall have any obligation to replace moneys appropriated for trial courts and reallocated pursuant to this paragraph.
  (6) The allocation of funds in the State Trial Court Improvement and Modernization Fund to ensure equal access to trial courts by the public, to improve trial court operations, and to meet trial court emergencies, as expressly authorized by statute.
  (7) Upon approval of the trial courts' budget by the Legislature, the preparation during the course of the fiscal year of allocation schedules for payments to the trial courts, consistent with Section 68085, which shall be submitted to the Controller's office at least 15 days before the due date of any allocation.
  (8) The establishment of rules regarding a court's authority to transfer trial court funding moneys from one functional category to another in order to address needs in any functional category.
  (9) At the request of the presiding judge of a trial court, an independent review of the funding level of the court to determine whether it is adequate to enable the court to discharge its statutory and constitutional responsibilities.
  (10) From time to time, a review of the level of fees charged by the courts for various services and prepare recommended adjustments for forwarding to the Legislature.
  (11) Provisions set forth in rules adopted pursuant to Section 77206 of the Government Code.
  (b) Courts and counties shall establish procedures to allow for the sharing of information as it relates to approved budget proposals and expenditures that impact the respective court and county budgets. The procedures shall include, upon the request of a court or county, that a respective court or county shall provide the requesting court or county a copy of its approved budget and, to the extent possible, approved program expenditure component information and a description of budget changes that are anticipated to have an impact on the requesting court or county. The Judicial Council shall provide to the Legislature on December 31, 2001, and yearly thereafter, budget expenditure data at the program component level for each court.
  (c) (1) The Judicial Council shall retain the ultimate responsibility to adopt a budget and allocate funding for the trial courts and perform the other activities listed in subdivision (a) that best assure their ability to carry out their functions, promote implementation of statewide policies, and promote the immediate implementation of efficiencies and cost saving measures in court operations, in order to guarantee equal access to the courts.
  (2) (A) When setting the allocations for trial courts, the Judicial Council shall set a preliminary allocation in July of each fiscal year. The preliminary allocation shall include an estimate of available trial court reserves as of June 30 of the prior fiscal year and each court's preliminary allocation shall be offset by the amount of reserves in excess of the amount authorized to be carried over pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 77203. In January of each fiscal year, after review of available trial court reserves as of June 30 of the prior fiscal year, the Judicial Council shall finalize allocations to trial courts and each court's finalized allocation shall be offset by the amount of reserves in excess of the amount authorized to be carried over pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 77203.
  (B) Upon preliminary determination of the allocations to trial courts pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Judicial Council shall set aside 2 percent of the total funds appropriated in Program 45.10 of Item 0250-101-0932 of the annual Budget Act and these funds shall remain in the Trial Court Trust Fund. These funds shall be administered by the Judicial Council and be allocated to trial courts for unforeseen emergencies, unanticipated expenses for existing programs, or unavoidable funding shortfalls. Unavoidable funding shortfall requests for up to 1.5 percent of these funds shall be submitted by the trial courts to the Judicial Council no later than October 1 of each year. The Judicial Council shall, by October 31 of each year, review and evaluate all requests submitted, select trial courts to receive funds, and notify those selected trial courts. By March 15 of each year, the Judicial Council shall distribute the remaining funds if there has been a request from a trial court for unforeseen emergencies or unanticipated expenses that has been reviewed, evaluated, and approved. Any unexpended funds shall be distributed to the trial courts on a prorated basis.
  (C) The Judicial Council shall, no later than April 15 of each year, report to the Legislature, pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government Code, and to the Department of Finance all requests and allocations made pursuant to subparagraph (B).

(a) If the cash balance of the Trial Court Trust Fund is insufficient to support trial court operations during the fiscal year, the Administrative Office of the Courts may transfer funds from any fund identified in subdivision (c) as a loan to the Trial Court Trust Fund. The total amount of outstanding loans shall not exceed one hundred fifty million dollars ($150,000,000) at any time during the fiscal year. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall not authorize a loan pursuant to this section to provide cash resources to any court that has not first provided a balanced budget approved by the Judicial Council.
  (b) The Administrative Office of the Courts may transfer funds from the Trial Court Trust Fund for the repayment of the loan described in subdivision (a). Interest shall not be charged or paid on any loan authorized pursuant to this section and all loans shall be repaid within two years from the date on which the loan originated. The authority to transfer funds provided by this section shall not interfere with the objectives for which the funds identified in subdivision (c) were created. This section shall not be construed to provide additional expenditure authority to the Trial Court Trust Fund.
  (c) Moneys in the following funds shall be available for transfer to the Trial Court Trust Fund as a loan for cash flow purposes:
  (1) The State Court Facilities Construction Fund.
  (2) The Immediate and Critical Needs Account of the State Court Facilities Construction Fund.
  (3) The Judicial Branch Workers' Compensation Fund.
  (d) For each loan executed pursuant to this section, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall, no later than August 30 of each year, report the following information to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the Department of Finance:
  (1) The date of the loan.
  (2) The amount loaned to each court.
  (3) The funding source of the loan.
  (4) The repayment date or proposed repayment date of the loan.

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require the state in any fiscal year to provide money for trial court costs from any state fund that is in excess of the total amount available for disbursement from that fund during the fiscal year. The Judicial Council may reallocate moneys pursuant to Section 68502.5 if at any time during the fiscal year it determines that the amount available for disbursement from any state fund will be less than or greater than the amount already allocated from that fund for that fiscal year.

Members of committees appointed pursuant to Section 68501 shall receive no compensation from the state for their services. When called into session by the Chairperson of the Judicial Council, members shall receive their actual and necessary expenses for travel, board, and lodging, which shall be paid from the funds appropriated to the use of the council. These expenses shall be approved in the manner that the council directs, and shall be audited by the Controller in accordance with the rules of the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board.

Whenever provision is made by law for appointment or designation, by the Judicial Council or the chairman thereof, of judges to serve on nonsalaried advisory committees, boards or commissions the provision shall be deemed to authorize appointment or designation of retired judges to serve on such committees, boards or commissions.

Upon receiving information of the death, removal, or resignation of any justice of the Supreme Court or of the courts of appeal, or a judge of the superior court, the Secretary of the Judicial Council shall immediately give the Controller, the Judges' Retirement System, and the Judges' Retirement System II written notice of such death, removal, or resignation.

The county clerks and clerks of all courts of record shall cooperate with the Judicial Council. They shall keep such records and make such reports to the council, in such manner and at such times, as the Chair of the Judicial Council requires, respecting the condition and manner of disposal of judicial business in their respective courts.

All salaries and expenses incurred by the council pursuant to this article, including the necessary expenses for travel, board, and lodging of the members of the council and its officers, assistants, and other employees incurred in the performance of the duties and business of the council, shall be paid from the funds appropriated for the use of the council. The salaries and expenses shall be approved in the manner that the council directs, and shall be audited by the Controller in accordance with the rules of the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board.

The Judicial Council shall, after receiving comment from the courts, court employee organizations, and other interested groups, adopt fiscally responsible travel reimbursement policies, procedures, and rates for the judicial branch that provide for appropriate accountability.

The Secretary of the Judicial Council shall purchase and provide for the installation of the flag of the United States and the Bear Flag of California in all the courtrooms of the Supreme Court and the courts of appeal.

No act of the Judicial Council shall be valid unless concurred in by a majority of its members.

The Judicial Council shall meet at the call of its chairman or as otherwise provided by it.

No member of the Judicial Council shall receive any compensation for his services as such, but he shall be allowed his necessary expenses for travel, board and lodging incurred in the performance of his duties as such.

The Judicial Council may prescribe by rule the form and content of forms used in the courts of this state. When any such form has been so prescribed by the Judicial Council, no court may use a different form which has as its aim the same function as that for which the Judicial Council's prescribed form is designed. The Judicial Council shall report periodically to the Legislature any statutory changes needed to achieve uniformity in the forms used in the courts of this state.

The Judicial Council shall prepare a pamphlet explaining the nature of guardianship of a minor and the rights, duties, and obligations of a person serving as guardian of a minor. The pamphlet shall be prepared in English and Spanish in language easily understood by a lay person not trained in law. Pamphlets shall be distributed to the superior courts in the state for use in guardianships established pursuant to Section 366.25 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and for such other purposes as may be directed or permitted by the Judicial Council.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Judicial Council shall provide by rule for the photographic, microphotographic, mechanical, or electronic entry, storage, and retrieval of court records.

Not later than January 1, 1985, the Judicial Council shall adopt rules of court regulating the selection of appointed counsel, other than the State Public Defender, to handle criminal appeals by indigent defendants. These rules shall establish procedures for the appointment of counsel in all appellate districts. In developing these rules, the Judicial Council shall consider the need to include screening of eligible appointees, the need to match the skills and experience of the attorney with the demands of the case and the process by which this might be done, and the need or desirability of evaluating an attorney's performance before assigning the attorney to another case. Further, in developing these rules, the Judicial Council shall consult with local bar associations and the Office of the State Public Defender.

The Judicial Council shall adopt appropriate rules providing for notice to the public and for public input to decisions concerning administrative and financial functions of a trial court, including, but not limited to, decisions relating to the budget of the trial court prior to submittal to the Judicial Council and subsequent to budget approval. The Judicial Council shall also adopt appropriate rules requiring trial courts to give notice to the public of other appropriate decisions concerning the administrative and financial functions of the trial courts. The provisions of this section do not apply to the judicial or adjudicative functions of the trial courts or to the assignment of judges.

(a) Prior to adopting a baseline budget plan for the fiscal year, each trial court shall provide the public notice of, and an opportunity for input on, the trial court's proposed budget plan, consistent with the requirements of this section.
  (b) The court shall allow public input by the submission of written comments or by holding a public hearing on the trial court's proposed baseline budget plan. Any public hearing shall be conducted in a place reasonably accessible to the residents of the county in which the court is located, and allow for public comment. The court may conduct the public hearing at the courthouse in that county.
  (c) (1) Prior to conducting a public hearing, the court shall make the proposed baseline budget plan available to the public and provide notice of the hearing date, time, and location, and the opportunity to submit written comments. Notice of the hearing and the opportunity to submit comments shall be by conspicuous posting within or about the court's facilities, on the court's public Internet Web site, and by electronic distribution to individuals that have subscribed to the court's electronic distribution service. The notice shall be posted not less than 10 court days prior to the date of the hearing.
  (2) The baseline budget plan shall be made available to the public at the courthouse and on the court's public Internet Web site no less than three court days prior to the hearing or, if there is no hearing, adoption of the plan.
  (d) This section shall not be construed to obligate courts to provide responses to the comments presented at the public hearing or to written comments received.

(a) On or before December 1 of each year until the completion and full implementation of the project, the Judicial Council shall provide an annual status report to the chairperson of the budget committee in each house of the Legislature and the chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee with regard to the California Case Management System and Court Accounting and Reporting System. The report shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:
  (1) Project accomplishments to date.
  (2) Project activities underway.
  (3) Proposed activities.
  (4) Annual revenues and expenditures to date in support of these projects, which shall include all costs for the Administrative Office of the Courts and incremental court personnel, contracts, and hardware and software.
  (b) On or before December 1 of each year until project completion, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall provide, on an annual basis to the chairperson of the budget committee in each house of the Legislature and the chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, copies of any independent project oversight report for the California Case Management System. The independent project oversight report shall include, but is not limited to, a review and an assessment of project activities, identification of deficiencies, and recommendations to the Administrative Office of the Courts on how to address those deficiencies. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall include in the annual submission descriptions on actions taken to address identified deficiencies.
  (c) Within 18 months of fully implementing the California Case Management System and the Court Accounting and Reporting System projects, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall provide to the chairperson of the budget committee in each house of the Legislature and the chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, a postimplementation evaluation report for each project. The report shall include, but is not limited to, a summary of the project background, project results, and an assessment of the attainment of project objectives.
  (d) From the amount of funds that the Judicial Council has approved for the development and implementation of the California Case Management System (CCMS), the Administrative Office of the Courts shall retain an independent consultant to review the system and produce a written independent assessment. The independent consultant who performs this independent assessment shall be selected through a competitive process. The independent assessment shall include, at a minimum, all of the following:
  (1) An evaluation of whether the appropriate software development processes were used to develop the system.
  (2) A determination of whether the system was well designed, based on generally accepted software development practices.
  (3) Testing of the system to detect potential flaws in the system' s ability to perform as expected.
  (e) Prior to acceptance of the CCMS product from the development vendor, and before deploying CCMS to any court, all of the following shall have occurred:
  (1) The independent consultant shall provide the written independent assessment to the Administrative Office of the Courts.
  (2) The Administrative Office of the Courts shall provide a copy of the written independent assessment to each of the chairs and vice-chairs of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review and the Assembly Committee on Budget no later than 10 days after it receives the assessment from the independent consultant.
  (f) Upon receiving the results of the independent assessment, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall work with the development vendor to ensure that any flaws, defects, or risks identified in the independent assessment are remedied during the warranty period.

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the California Case Management System, as well as all other administrative and infrastructure information technology projects of the Judicial Council or the courts with total costs estimated at more than five million dollars ($5,000,000), shall be subject to the reviews and recommendations of the office of the State Chief Information Officer. The State Chief Information Officer shall submit a copy of those reviews and recommendations to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.
  (b) In conducting its review, the office of the State Chief Information Officer shall do all of the following:
  (1) Evaluate information technology projects based on the business case justification, resources requirements, proposed technical solution, project management, oversight and risk mitigation approach, and compliance with statewide strategies, policies, and procedures. Projects shall continue to be funded through the established Budget Act.
  (2) Consult with the Administrative Office of the Courts during project planning to ensure that project proposals are based on well-defined programmatic needs, clearly identify programmatic benefits, and consider feasible alternatives to address the identified needs and benefits consistent with statewide strategies, policies, and procedures.
  (3) Consult with the Administrative Office of the Courts to review the project governance and management framework to ensure that it is best designed for success and will serve as a resource throughout the project implementation.
  (4) Require the Administrative Office of the Courts to provide information on information technology projects, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
  (A) The degree to which the project is within approved scope, cost, and schedule.
  (B) Project issues, risks, and corresponding mitigation efforts.
  (C) The current estimated schedule and costs for project completion.

The Chairman of the Judicial Council, with the approval of the Director of Finance, may adjust the salaries of the following judicial officers by the same percent as is granted state employees of comparable salary level as a general salary increase after July 1, 1969:
  (a) The Clerk of the Supreme Court whose salary is set by Section 68841.
  (b) The reporter of decisions for the Supreme Court and of the courts of appeal whose salary is set by Section 68901.

The Judicial Council shall provide for the uniform entry, storage, and retrieval of court data relating to civil cases in superior court other than limited civil cases by means provided for in this section, in addition to any other data relating to court administration, including all of the following:
  (a) The category type of civil case, such as contract or personal injury-death-property damage by motor vehicle.
  (b) The time from filing of the action to settlement.
  (c) The type of settlement procedure, if any, which contributed to the settlement disposition.
  (d) The character and amount of any settlement made as to each party litigant, but preserving the confidentiality of such information if the settlement is not otherwise public.
  (e) The character and amount of any judgments rendered by court and jury trials for comparison with settled cases.
  (f) The extent to which damages prayed for compare to settlement or judgment in character and amount.
  (g) The extent to which collateral sources have contributed, or will contribute, financially to satisfaction of the judgment or settlement. Provision for the uniform entry, storage, and retrieval of court data may be by use of litigant statements or forms, if available, or by collection and analysis of statistically reliable samples. The Judicial Council shall report to the Legislature on or before January 1, 1998, and annually thereafter on the uniform entry, storage, and retrieval of court data as provided for in this section. The Legislature shall evaluate and adjust the level of funds available to pay the costs of automating trial court recordkeeping systems, pursuant to Section 68090.8, for noncompliance with the requirements of this section.

(a) The Judicial Council is authorized to establish a tax-exempt public benefit nonprofit corporation, or other tax-exempt entity, qualified under federal and state law to raise revenues and receive grants or other financial support from private or public sources, for the purposes of undertaking or funding any lawful activity authorized to be undertaken by the Judicial Council. Financial support sought by the nonprofit corporation or other tax-exempt entity shall be used solely for the governmental purposes approved by the Judicial Council for activities within the scope of authority of the Judicial Council.
  (b) The Administrative Office of the Courts may provide administrative support and oversight services to a tax-exempt public benefit nonprofit corporation or other tax-exempt entity established under this section. Any services provided shall be consistent with current limitations and practices of public employment.

With advice from law enforcement and domestic violence groups, organizations representing the interests of parents, and staff of the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature, on or before January 1, 1999, the Judicial Council shall establish a single, standard, uniform form to be used by all trial courts for temporary restraining orders and restraining or protective orders including orders involving child custody and visitation, and a separate standardized form for emergency protective orders. The Judicial Council shall also establish a standardized custody and visitation attachment for use with these forms.

(a) The board of supervisors of each county may require each official reporter and official temporary reporter to:
  (1) Maintain records of transcript production and related income and expenses for inspection and auditing.
  (2) Submit annual reports derived from the records, with a verification of their accuracy.
  (b) The reports shall be submitted in sealed envelopes to a designated official and shall be reviewed only by those persons having authority to inspect and audit the records and reports. The records and reports of each reporter shall be confidential and shall be reviewed only to derive composite data for setting a base salary for the official reporters and official temporary reporters of each court. The composite data shall be a matter of public record.
  (c) Each such annual report shall include the following information:
  (1) The quantity and types of transcripts prepared by the official reporters and official reporters pro tempore during the reporting period.
  (2) The fees charged and the fees collected for such transcripts.
  (3) Expenses incurred by the reporters in connection with the preparation of such transcripts.
  (4) The amount of time the reporters have spent in attendance upon the courts for the purpose of reporting proceedings, and the compensation received for this purpose.