Filing a civil case in San Francisco County

Every California civil case is opened with the same statewide papers. What changes county by county is how they are filed and what the local court adds on top. This page covers the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. It describes procedure; it does not tell you what to do, and it is not legal advice.

Electronic filing

E-filing is mandatory for represented parties in San Francisco County. San Francisco frames the requirement by case type rather than by who the filer is. In a "Designated Case" — which the rule defines to include all general civil cases except small claims — all pleadings and other documents to be filed must be e-filed. Papers relating to a pleading or a request for an order, such as a notice, points and authorities and a proposed order, must be e-filed together in a single transaction.

If you are not represented: Self-represented parties and non-parties are excluded from the requirement, though the rule encourages them to comply voluntarily. They must be served conventionally unless they agree in writing to accept electronic service.

The court cites the following as the authority for it:

• San Francisco Local Rule 2.11 (E-Filing & E-Service Rules), revised effective July 1, 2026
• Cal. Rules of Court, rule 2.253 (cases designated by court order)
• Cal. Rules of Court, rules 2.100 et seq. (format) and 2.257 (signatures)

This matters to an injured person more than it looks. If you are represented, the requirement falls on your lawyer, not on you. If you are not, it is worth knowing whether the court will accept paper — because turning up with paper at a court that has stopped taking it costs a day.

Other things the court says

• A case that is merely alleged to be complex does not become a Designated Case until the court enters an order classifying it.
• Some documents must still be filed on paper even in a Designated Case — among them requests to enter default and default judgment packets, writs, abstracts, bonds, undertakings and rent deposits, orders of examination, orders to show cause and affidavits for contempt, ex parte applications for an order for publication or posting, challenges under Code of Civil Procedure sections 170.1, 170.3 or 170.6, and proposed stipulated orders and proposed findings and orders after hearing.
• Conventional filing is done by bringing an original and two sets of photocopies to the filing window in Room 402 of the Civic Center Courthouse, placing them in the secure drop box there, or mailing them. Requests for domestic violence restraining orders and proposed temporary restraining orders may be filed electronically despite that list.
• A represented party may apply to be excused where compliance would be an undue hardship or cause significant prejudice — by ex parte application or on Judicial Council form EFS-007 with EFS-008. It is heard in the assigned department, the applicant must appear, and the application needs a declaration under penalty of perjury setting out the hardship with specificity.

What is the same everywhere in California

Whatever a county adds, these do not change.

• The Civil Case Cover Sheet, CM-010, is mandatory with the first paper. If it is missing or defective the clerk must still file the paper, but the party or the lawyer can be sanctioned.
• The complaint is not complete without at least one cause of action attached.
• In a personal injury or wrongful death case the amount demanded is not stated in the complaint.
• A party under 18 needs a guardian ad litem appointed, and a settlement for them needs the court's approval.
• Which county the case belongs in is set by statute, not by the county's own rules. Venue and the courthouses in San Francisco County.

If a public entity is the defendant

Nothing on this page changes the six-month clock. A claim against a city, the county, or the state generally has to be presented to that entity within six months of the injury — which happens long before anything is filed in court at all. Claims against a government entity.

Common questions

Which forms does every San Francisco County case need?

The statewide ones, whatever the county adds. A complaint with at least one cause of action attached, and a Civil Case Cover Sheet, which is mandatory with the first paper in every California county.

Does the county decide where my case is filed?

No, the statute does. The superior court in the county where the injury happened is a proper court, and so is the county where a defendant lived when the action was filed. Local rules then govern how the case is filed and handled once it is in the right county.

How current is this page?

It records what could be retrieved from the court’s own published material on 1 September 2026, and says plainly where nothing could be retrieved. Local rules change on their own schedule, often in January and July, so check the court’s own page before relying on any of it.

Sources: retrieved from the court on 1 September 2026 — Uniform Local Rules of Court, San Francisco Superior Court, rule 2.11 (E-Filing & E-Service Rules), revised effective July 1, 2026 — the court’s complete 250-page consolidated rules, read in full. Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco — local rules. Statewide requirements from the Judicial Council forms and Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.220. Government claim deadline: Gov. Code, § 911.2.