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Civil Court

Mandatory Settlement Conference
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1. When and how?
2. Serve and file your statement
3. What to expect
   

1. When and how?
   
   When you get a Trial date, you’ll get a date for your Mandatory Settlement Conference. In general, if your trial is on Monday, you’ll have your Mandatory Settlement Conference on the Wednesday before the trial. Short trials under a half day do not have Mandatory Settlement Conferences.
   
   You’ll probably have your hearing in the Court building. A temporary judge will hear your Settlement Conference. Temporary judges (called "Pro Tems", short for pro tempore) are lawyers with a lot of experience. They volunteer to be the judges for your Settlement Conference.
   
   
   A temporary judge:

 
• Meets with the people in the case, or their lawyers,
• Hears the facts of the case, and
• Tries to find a solution that everyone accepts.

Settlement conferences work when a lawyer with experience helps the parties find a solution.
 

2. Serve and file your statement
   
   Everyone in the case has to file a written statement. It should say how your settlement talks are going. File it at least 10 days before your Mandatory Settlement Conference. You have to have it served on everyone else in the case.
   
    
3. What to expect
   
   Your Mandatory Settlement Conference is a time to try to settle your case. Be ready to talk seriously about how to solve your case.