L.A. Civil Court Budget Cuts: Changing Court Locations

Proposed cuts to the California state budget by Governor Jerry Brown, if approved, will be taking a toll on courts throughout the state, with Los Angeles feeling major effects. While there was previously a total of $105 million in reduction, another $56 to 85 million in cuts are expected to be made. Recently, Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA) held a New Court Procedures Seminar with supervising Judge Hon. Dan Buckley, providing vital information on alterations to the justice system in southern California. At Robinson Calcagnie Robinson Shapiro Davis, Inc., we are against these cuts, which, if passed, will significantly impact a wide range of court cases, and therefore, the lives of those involved.

In relation to location, the major downfalls of the cuts, if finalized, include the following:

• All court operations will be greatly reduced.
• Ten courthouses (Huntington Park, Whittier, Pomona North, Malibu, West Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, San Pedro, Beacon Street, Catalina, and Kenyon Juvenile Justice Center) will be closed to adjudicatory operations.
• 20,000 cases from the Los Angeles branch courts will be transferred to Los Angeles Mosk between April 2 and May 18. Trial dates and locations affected include Long Beach 4/15, Compton 4/15, Pomona 4/22, and Norwalk 4/2.
• Small claim cases can be filed and heard only at Los Angeles Mosk, Alhambra, Downey, Van Nuys, and Inglewood, each having their own related districts.
• Unlawful detainer cases can only be filed and heard in Los Angeles Mosk, Pasadena, Long Beach, and Santa Monica.
• Dept 1 will provide trial assignments. It is necessary to make any 170.6 before leaving the courtroom when the trial assignment is provided.
• Two Collection Courts will be created in Chatsworth and Norwalk, where all collection cases will be filed. The remaining limited civil cases will be filed at the Los Angeles Mosk location.
• In total, there will be 31 trial courts. Ten of these will be in Mosk, while the remaining 21 will be spread throughout districts in the county.

This is the first of two blogs about potential changes to Los Angeles courts from proposed major budget cuts. Come back for the second entry, concerning trial dates and times.