Rule 3.1385.Duty to notify court and others of settlement of entire case

Division 12. Settlement · Last amended 2013 · Last verified July 29, 2026

In one sentenceRule 3.1385 requires the plaintiff or other party seeking relief to promptly notify the court and any arbitrator or ADR neutral once a case fully settles, to file a dismissal within 45 days or explain the delay, and sets special procedures for conditional settlements and settlements involving a minor’s or disabled person’s claim.

Full Text of Rule 3.1385

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

(a) Notice of settlement

(1) Court and other persons to be notified If an entire case is settled or otherwise disposed of, each plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief must immediately file written notice of the settlement or other disposition with the court and serve the notice on all parties and any arbitrator or other court-connected alternative dispute resolution (ADR) neutral involved in the case. Each plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief must also immediately give oral notice to all of the above if a hearing, conference, or trial is scheduled to take place within 10 days.

(2) Compensation for failure to provide notice If the plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief does not notify an arbitrator or other court-connected ADR neutral involved in the case of a settlement at least 2 days before the scheduled hearing or session with that arbitrator or neutral, the court may order the party to compensate the arbitrator or other neutral for the scheduled hearing time. The amount of compensation ordered by the court must not exceed the maximum amount of compensation the arbitrator would be entitled to receive for service as an arbitrator under Code of Civil Procedure section 1141.18(b) or that the neutral would have been entitled to receive for service as a neutral at the scheduled hearing or session. (Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2007; previously amended effective January 1, 1989, July 1, 2001, July 1, 2002, January 1, 2004, and January 1, 2006.)

(b) Dismissal of case Except as provided in (c) or (d), each plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief must serve and file a request for dismissal of the entire case within 45 days after the date of settlement of the case. If the plaintiff or other party required to serve and file the request for dismissal does not do so, the court must dismiss the entire case 45 days after it receives notice of settlement unless good cause is shown why the case should not be dismissed. (Subd (b) amended effective January 1, 2009; adopted effective January 1, 1989; previously amended effective July 1, 2002, January 1, 2004, and January 1, 2006.)

(1) Notice If the settlement agreement conditions dismissal of the entire case on the satisfactory completion of specified terms that are not to be performed within 45 days of the settlement, including payment in installment payments, the notice of conditional settlement served and filed by each plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief must specify the date by which the dismissal is to be filed.

(2) Dismissal If the plaintiff or other party required to serve and file a request for dismissal within 45 days after the dismissal date specified in the notice does not do so, the court must dismiss the entire case unless good cause is shown why the case should not be dismissed.

(3) Hearings vacated

(A) Except as provided in (B), on the filing of the notice of conditional settlement, the court must vacate all hearings and other proceedings requiring the appearance of a party and may not set any hearing or other proceeding requiring the appearance of a party earlier than 45 days after the dismissal date specified in the notice, unless requested by a party.

(B) The court need not vacate a hearing on an order to show cause or other proceeding relating to sanctions, or for determination of good faith settlement at the request of a party under Code of Civil Procedure section 877.6.

(4) Case disposition time Under standard 2.2(n)(1)(A), the filing of a notice of conditional settlement removes the case from the computation of time used to determine case disposition time. (Subd (c) amended effective July 1, 2013; adopted effective January 1, 1989; previously amended effective July 1, 2002, January 1, 2004, and January 1, 2006.)

(d) Compromise of claims of a minor or disabled person If the settlement of the case involves the compromise of the claim of a minor or person with a disability, the court must not hold an order to show cause hearing under (b) before the court has held a hearing to approve the settlement, provided the parties have filed appropriate papers to seek court approval of the settlement. (Subd (d) adopted effective January 1, 2009.)

(e) Request for additional time to complete settlement If a party who has served and filed a notice of settlement under (a) determines that the case cannot be dismissed within the prescribed 45 days, that party must serve and file a notice and a supporting declaration advising the court of that party’s inability to dismiss the case within the prescribed time, showing good cause for its inability to do so, and proposing an alternative date for dismissal. The notice and a supporting declaration must be served and filed at least 5 court days before the time for requesting dismissal has elapsed. If good cause is shown, the court must continue the matter to allow additional time to complete the settlement. The court may take such other actions as may be appropriate for the proper management and disposition of the case. (Subd (e) adopted effective January 1, 2009.)

End

Plain-English Summary

Courts and court-connected neutrals need to know right away when a case is over, so they stop spending time and resources on a dispute that no longer exists. Rule 3.1385 makes that notice mandatory: the moment an entire case settles or is otherwise resolved, the plaintiff or whichever party sought relief must file written notice with the court and serve it on every party and any arbitrator or ADR neutral involved, and must follow up with oral notice if a hearing or trial is scheduled within the next ten days. Waiting too long to tell an arbitrator about a settlement carries a real cost — the court can order the settling party to pay for the arbitrator’s scheduled time if notice comes fewer than two days before the hearing.

Notice is only the first step. Within 45 days of the settlement, the responsible party must also file a request to dismiss the case, and if that filing does not happen, the court dismisses the case on its own unless someone shows good cause not to. Some settlements cannot close that fast — money paid in installments, or conditions that take longer than 45 days to satisfy. For those, the rule lets the parties file a notice of conditional settlement specifying a later dismissal date, which pauses most hearings requiring a party’s appearance until close to that date, though hearings on sanctions or on a good faith settlement determination stay on calendar. A party who still cannot meet even that extended deadline can ask for more time by showing good cause before the deadline passes.

Two further safeguards apply. When a settlement involves a minor’s or a disabled person’s claim, the court cannot hold a dismissal-related order to show cause hearing until it has first approved the settlement itself, so the required court approval always comes before the case gets closed out. And under a separate statute, parties who settle and agree to dismiss under an enforceable settlement agreement still have to follow this rule’s notice and dismissal procedures — that statute permits the dismissal, but it does not excuse anyone from Rule 3.1385’s reporting requirements.

Advisory Committee Comment

The following comment is published by the Judicial Council of California alongside the rule itself — not commentary from this site.

Subdivisions (a) and (b). Amended Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6 allows parties to settle a case and agree to have the case dismissed without prejudice. The plaintiff or other party seeking affirmative relief must follow the procedures outlined in subdivisions (a) and (b) even if the parties settle the case and agree to dismiss under the provisions of Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6. Subdivision (c). Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6 allows for but does not mandate the dismissal of cases with conditional settlements either upon stipulation of the parties or on the court’s own motion. Subdivision (c) provides an alternative process for cases with a conditional settlement in which dismissal is not sought under Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6.

Frequently Asked Questions

How soon must a settled California civil case be dismissed?

Within 45 days of the settlement date. Rule 3.1385(b) requires the court to dismiss the case on its own if no request for dismissal is filed by then, unless good cause is shown.

What happens if a settlement cannot be finalized within 45 days?

The parties can file a notice of conditional settlement under Rule 3.1385(c) specifying a later dismissal date, which generally pauses hearings requiring a party’s appearance until close to that date, apart from sanctions hearings and good faith settlement determinations.

What happens if a party fails to notify an arbitrator of a settlement in time?

Under Rule 3.1385(a)(2), the court may order the party who failed to give at least two days’ notice to compensate the arbitrator or other ADR neutral for the scheduled hearing time, up to the amount the neutral would otherwise have earned.

Does settling a minor’s claim change the dismissal procedure?

Yes. Rule 3.1385(d) bars the court from holding an order to show cause hearing on dismissal until it has held a hearing approving the settlement, as long as the parties filed the papers needed to seek that approval.

Amendment History

Rule 3.1385 amended effective July 1, 2013; adopted as rule 225 effective January 1, 1985; previously amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; previously amended effective January 1, 1989, January 1, 1992, July 1, 2001, July 1, 2002, January 1, 2004, January 1, 2006, and January 1, 2009.

Source & verification. Rule text is reproduced verbatim from the Judicial Council of California. Adopted by the Judicial Council of California. Last verified July 29, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: deadline to dismiss case after settlement Californianotice of settlement requirement California courtconditional settlement dismissal rule California