Court Reporter Availability

January 20, 2022

Effective February 1, 2022, official court reporters are normally available in all felony and juvenile proceedings, guardianships, civil commitment and contempt proceedings, LPS and probate conservatorship trials, habeas corpus evidentiary proceedings, grand jury proceedings when requested by the district attorney, Family Law proceedings pursuant to Family Code, §§ 3042, 3410, 7892 and 9005 and any other proceeding in which an official court reporter is mandated by law. Official court reporters are not normally available in all other civil, family and probate matters including pretrial proceedings, proceedings related to restraining orders, and court and jury trials. Official court reporters are not normally available in all Department of Child Support Services proceedings. Infractions, misdemeanor, small claims and limited civil proceedings will be reported electronically as authorized by statute. A party requesting an official court reporter in a matter in which an official reporter is not normally available must file and submit a timely request and make arrangements to satisfy the applicable fee or qualify for a fee waiver if one has not been previously approved. Due to the statewide shortage of court reporters and the duty to prioritize official reporters for proceedings in which reporting is mandated, the court may not be able to guarantee access or continuous access to an official court reporter without delay or interruption. A party may request an official court reporter for any proceeding which is not normally reported and is not subject to electronic recording by filing a written request (Form 3020-CV) not less than 10 days before the hearing date, or at the time the hearing is set if less than 10 days. The form shall be filed with the court or emailed to the Court Reporter Coordinator at reporterrequest@solano.courts.ca.gov. Any request submitted to the court shall additionally be immediately served on the opposing party. Untimely requests will not be processed. Upon receipt of a written request for a court reporter in any civil, family or probate matter, an official court reporter will be scheduled, subject to availability. For each proceeding lasting less than one hour, a fee of $30 shall be charged for the cost of an