Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento Family Law & Probate Page 1 of 6 (Revised 2/4/19) TRIAL SETTING INSTRUCTIONS: OBTAINING A JUDGMENT OF DISSOLUTION, NULLITY OR LEGAL SEPARATION WHEN A RESPONSE HAS BEEN FILED AND/OR YOU DO NOT AGREE Why Is A Settlement Conference Required? Many parties find it easier to comply with court orders made by agreement rather than orders imposed by a Judge. In recognition of this, the Court requires all parties who request a Trial to first attend a mandatory Settlement Conference. The purpose of the Settlement Conference is to provide the parties with an opportunity to settle unresolved issues without a Trial and to have an opportunity to have a final say in the outcome of the dissolution. Otherwise, at Trial, the Judge has the final say. If all issues can be resolved at the Settlement Conference, then the Trial date can be vacated or canceled. However, if both parties fail to attend the Settlement Conference or file a Statement of Issues, neither party will be permitted to attend the Trial date and the Trial date will be dropped from the Court222s Calendar. Preliminary Steps Before using these instructions, the following must be completed: A Response to the Petition has been filed.Both the Petitioner222s and Respondent222s Preliminary and Final Declarations of Disclosureare completed and served on the other spouse and Declaration Regarding Service ofDeclaration of Disclosure (FL-141) has been properly completed and filed with the court byboth parties.You have responded to all discovery requests from the other party.Information needed to complete Memorandum to Set Date Petition was filed.Date the Response was filed. If you do not agree on all issues involved in your case, you may want to have the Judge decide those issues. The Judge will make a decision on the issues after considering all the relevant evidence presented to the Court by the parties. You must complete several steps before you appear in front of a Judge. These instructions describe what you must do. If you want legal advice or assistance, you should consult a private attorney. The Family Law Facilitator222s Office can help you with some of the steps, but is not permitted to give legal advice or to represent you in Court. *NOTE: If either party is incarcerated, that party will not be transported to the court date(s) and it is possible that the court date(s) will be dropped without that party222s attendance. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento Family Law Facilitator222s Office Page 2 of 6 2/28/2019 Both parties222addresses (or the other party222s attorney222s address).Documents & Materials Needed to File Memorandum to Set, Local form (FL/E-LP-625).Memorandum to Set 226 (FL/E-LP-625) This form is used to request Settlement Conference and Trial dates to finish your case. The section at the top of the form is called the 223caption224 and must be completed before forms can be filed. It is helpful if you use middle initials or full middle name and suffix, e.g., Jr., II, or III when completing the forms. In the top left box of the caption, print your full name, full mailing address, telephone number with area code and email address. In the space next to where it says "ATTORNEY FOR" print the words 223In Pro Per.224 This means that you are acting as your own attorney in this case. In the second box down on the left side of the caption, the Court222s name and address may already appear. If not, please print the following information starting right after where it says 223Superior Court of California, County of224: Sacramento 3341 Power Inn Road, Room 100 Sacramento, California 95826 Family Relations Courthouse In the third box down on the left side of the caption, print the full name of the party that opened/filed the case next to the word 223Petitioner224 and the name of the other party (or person that was originally served) next to 223Respondent.224 In the fourth box down on the left side of the caption, if there is a third party(ies) or other parent, write in the word 223Claimant224 and print the full name of that person next to the word 223Claimant.224 In the second box down on the right side of the caption, print the case number. In the fourth box down check the box next to 223Memorandum to Set (Family Law)224. After the words 223Nature of Case:224 check the box for 223Family Law.224 Item 1. Check the box for either Petitioner or Respondent to indicate that you have completed your financial disclosures. If the other party has also completed his or her disclosures, check both boxes. Disregard the box next to the word 223Claimant,224 unless there is a 223Claimant224 in your case, then mark the box. If there is a claimant, a copy of the Memorandum to Set and the Statement of Issues and Contentions will need to be served on the claimant also. Item 2. There is nothing to complete. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento Family Law Facilitator222s Office Page 3 of 6 2/28/2019 Item 3. Certain issues may be given priority in the scheduling of Settlement Conference and Trial dates. Because preferences can be complex, if you wish to request one, please utilize the resources available at the Law Library or consult a private attorney. If you are not able to claim a preference or you do not wish to claim a preference, you may leave this section blank. Item 4. Check the box that is closest to the time you think it will take for both sides to present their cases. In most cases 275 a day is more than sufficient time to have your case heard. Item 5. Print the dates the Petition and Response were filed. You will find the date stamped in the upper right corner of each filed document that says 223for Court use only222. If you are unsure, you can review your file in the Records Department located in Room 102 or check with the Family Law Facilitator222s Office. Read Item 6. There is nothing to complete. Item 7. Print your name, address and telephone number next to either Petitioner or Respondent. Print your spouse222s name next to the appropriate party designation. If your spouse has an attorney, print the attorney222s name and address below your spouse222s name. If he or she does not have an attorney, print your spouse222s address. If there is a Claimant, complete that section as well. If you have changed your address, you must complete the Notice of Change of Address or Other Contact Information form (Judicial Council Form MC-040) and submit with the Memorandum to Set. Completing the two boxes on page 2: First, you must contact all other parties (or their attorney) regarding scheduling the Settlement Conference and Trial dates. If you are unable to reach all other parties, you will need to keep trying until you are able to discuss the dates. If the other parties are represented by an attorney, call the attorney222s office. Ask the other party(ies) if they agree to request the first available dates or if they have specific dates that they are available or are not available. (Trial Section) Before completing the box on page 2 that says 223Trial224, try to agree with the other party(ies) to at least three dates on which to schedule a Trial date. Trials are scheduled on Thursdays and Fridays. Trials, 2 days in length, are heard on Thursday and the subsequent Friday. If there are specific dates that you or the other party(ies) are not available then you can request 223any date but224 the dates either of you are not available. Available dates may be found on the court222s Public Notice at: https://www.saccourt.ca.gov/family/family-law.aspx. If both you and your spouse are able to agree upon dates, then print the dates next to the agreed upon dates in the 223Trial224 portion of the box of page 2 for the Petitioner, and for the Respondent. If one or the other of you is available only on certain dates, then print those dates next to the available dates for each party. If you are merely concerned with having the soonest possible Trial date, print 223first available,224 next to either Petitioner222s Available or Agreed Dates, and/or the Respondent222s