Attendance and Public Comment Procedures | Judicial Branch of California

Judicial Council business meetings are held five times a year. Members of the public are invited to attend the open sessions of the council meetings, in person or remotely. Public comment during the council meetings is one of the many opportunities that the Judicial Council provides to receive views from the public and can provide valuable information for council members and enhance the council’s understanding of the issues coming before it. Public comment can be provided on general matters of judicial administration or on specific agenda items. Members of the public may provide written comment or sign up for requests to speak when the meeting agenda is published on the council’s Meeting Information Center website, which contains meeting-specific information, such as location, important dates, discussion items, and public comment deadlines.

How to Make a Public Comment at a Judicial Council Meeting

Public comment can be provided in writing, in person, or remotely (when available). Members of the public who wish to submit written comments or requests to speak must do so by the established due date and in accordance with specific guidelines below.

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Written Comments and General Correspondence

Written comments to the Judicial Council are always welcome. The following will be accepted and made available to the council:

Written comments on specific agenda items for any Judicial Council meeting;
Written comments on circulating orders currently under consideration by the council; and General correspondence addressed to the council on matters affecting judicial administration.
Written comments and general correspondence must be emailed to judicialcouncil@jud.ca.gov. Written comments received after the deadline will not be delivered to Judicial Council members. General correspondence received between council meetings will be made available to council members in conjunction with the subsequent business meeting materials.
Written comments and correspondence will not be accepted or made available to the Judicial Council on matters relating to a particular case or judicial officer performance. The Judicial Council is not authorized to intervene on behalf of a party in a case, nor may it offer legal advice to a member of the public as to how to proceed with, or in, a lawsuit or prosecution. Rather, concerns as to substantive rulings in a case may be addressed through the appropriate procedural mechanisms, such as motions for reconsideration, writs, and appeals.

Requests to Speak

At the discretion of the Executive and Planning Committee, Judicial Council meetings allot time as designated by the agenda for the public to speak. Individuals can request in advance to speak at a council meeting, or they can make their requests on the day of any in-person or remote council meeting by the established deadlines. Efforts will be made to accommodate each individual who has signed up to speak.

Make a written request in advance

Those who submit a written request to speak either in person or remotely will receive a confirmation of receipt and instructions on how to present their comments. Submit advance requests to speak by the established deadline at judicialcouncil@jud.ca.gov. Please provide the speaker’s first and last name and the topic to be addressed or the number of the specific agenda item. Emergency meetings or some urgent circumstances may allow for written comments only at the discretion of the Executive and Planning Committee.

Make a request on the day of the meeting

Members of the public who attend an in-person Judicial Council meeting may request to comment at the meeting. Members of the public may also request to comment at a remote meeting either in person or remotely by emailing judicialcouncil@jud.ca.gov up to the day of the meeting to receive instructions on how to make public comments. Requests to speak will be taken until the deadline on the meeting agenda.

Please be advised

Public comment will be heard as designated by the agenda. Items are generally called in the order of the agenda; however, items may be called out of order in rare circumstances. Agenda items may proceed faster than the published timeframes.
The Judicial Council will work to accommodate everyone who has signed up to speak. Speakers will be prioritized on a first-come-first-served basis for up to 30 minutes total on the council agenda. When requests cannot be accommodated due to the number of speakers, written comments will be accepted and made available to the council.
Individual speakers will be invited to speak for up to three minutes, depending on the number of requests received. The exact time allotted to each speaker will be announced by the Executive and Planning Committee chair at the beginning of each public comment session.
Three or more individuals may pool their time for one speaker. The Executive and Planning Committee chair will determine the total amount of speaking time for that person, which may be less than the total time available to the individuals separately.

Photography and Recording

Judicial Council meetings are livestreamed; videos and captured captioning are publicly available online, both during and after the meeting.
Photography or video recording during council meetings is prohibited without prior approval by the Chief Justice per California Rules of Court, rule 10.6(f).
Written requests to photograph or record during a council meeting may be sent to judicialcouncil@jud.ca.gov at least two business days before the meeting.

Conduct at Meetings

Members of the public who attend open session meetings, in person or remotely, must maintain proper decorum and remain orderly. The Chief Justice may order the removal of any disorderly persons per rule 10.6(c) of the California Rules of Court.

Public Record

Please note that comments received will, in full, become part of the public record. Case-specific comments and materials may not be included as part of the record.