Meet and confer before initial case management conference
30 days before initial case management conference date, under Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.724.
Rule text
Unless the court orders another time period, no later than 30 calendar days before the date set for the initial case management conference, the parties must meet and confer, in person or by telephone, to consider each of the issues identified in rule 3.727
Calculate this deadline
- Trigger (Initial case management conference date): Friday, November 6, 2026.
- Count back 30 calendar days: Wednesday, October 7, 2026.
Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.724
Unless the court orders another time period, no later than 30 calendar days before the date set for the initial case management conference, the parties must meet and confer, in person or by telephone, to consider each of the issues identified in rule 3.727Official source
Cal. Code Civ. Proc. 12, 12a, 12b, 10; Cal. Rules of Court, rule 1.10
CCP 12: "The time in which any act provided by law is to be done is computed by excluding the first day, and including the last, unless the last day is a holiday, and then it is also excluded." CCP 12a(a): "If the last day for the performance of any act provided or required by law to be performed within a specified period of time is a holiday, then that period is hereby extended to and including the next day that is not a holiday. For purposes of this section, “holiday” means all day on Saturdays, all holidays specified in Section 135 and, to the extent provided in Section 12b, all days that by terms of Section 12b are required to be considered as holidays." CCP 12b: "If any city, county, state, or public office, other than a branch office, is closed for the whole of any day, insofar as the business of that office is concerned, that day shall be considered as a holiday for the purposes of computing time under Sections 12 and 12a." CCP 10: "Holidays within the meaning of this code are every Sunday and any other days that are specified or provided for as judicial holidays in Section 135."Official source
- Orange County adds a separate local meet-and-confer statement (see county_overlays).
- If the clerk's office is closed or inaccessible on the last day (weather, emergency or local closure orders), the deadline may be extended. Check local orders.
This calculator applies the cited rules to the dates you enter. It is not legal advice. Court orders, local rules, and case-specific facts can change a deadline; verify before relying on it. Rule set pending attorney review.
Worked example
Initial case management conference date on Monday, March 15, 2027, personal service: due Thursday, February 11, 2027.
- Trigger (Initial case management conference date): Monday, March 15, 2027.
- Count back 30 calendar days: Saturday, February 13, 2027.
- That day is a Saturday. Counting backward, this calculator uses the earlier court day so the full notice period is preserved: Thursday, February 11, 2027 (see Cal. Code Civ. Proc. 12c).
Notes
Orange County adds a separate local meet-and-confer statement (see county_overlays).
Related deadlines
- Case management statement (15 days before)
- Serve complaint and file proof of service (60 days after)
- Serve summons and complaint (mandatory 3-year limit) (36 months after)
- File proof of service of summons (statutory outer limit) (60 days after)
- Earliest discretionary dismissal for failure to serve (2 years) (24 months after)
- Responsive papers to OSC re failure to serve or default (rule 3.110) (5 days before)
- Bring action to trial (mandatory 5-year limit) (60 months after)
- Bring action to trial again after mistrial or hung jury (3 years) (36 months after)
Local rules by county
County local rules and courtroom procedures can add to or change this deadline. Pick a county to calculate with them applied.
- Alameda
- Alpine
- Amador
- Butte
- Calaveras
- Colusa
- Contra Costa
- Del Norte
- El Dorado
- Fresno
- Glenn
- Humboldt
- Imperial
- Inyo
- Kern
- Kings
- Lake
- Lassen
- Los Angeles
- Madera
- Marin
- Mariposa
- Mendocino
- Merced
- Modoc
- Mono
- Monterey
- Napa
- Nevada
- Orange
- Placer
- Plumas
- Riverside
- Sacramento
- San Benito
- San Bernardino
- San Diego
- San Francisco
- San Joaquin
- San Luis Obispo
- San Mateo
- Santa Barbara
- Santa Clara
- Santa Cruz
- Shasta
- Sierra
- Siskiyou
- Solano
- Sonoma
- Stanislaus
- Sutter
- Tehama
- Trinity
- Tulare
- Tuolumne
- Ventura
- Yolo
- Yuba
Rules current as of 2026-10-25. Confirm against the official source and any local rule or court order before relying on a date. Rules changelog.