Also known as: rules of court · rule of the court · rules of the court · court rule · court rules
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A rule promulgated by a court to regulate its own practice and procedure.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Ryan Roberts faces criminal charges. The prosecutor calls his spouse to testify about a conversation. Under the court's local rule of court on privilege procedure, the spouse refuses and the court declares her unavailable as a witness.
Rosalind Reed orally agrees to sell land to Ravi Reddy. After Reed repudiates, Reddy drafts and signs a memorandum describing the deal. The court applies its rule of court allowing a later writing to satisfy the statute of frauds and enforces the contract.
Rosa Ruiz offers evidence at trial. The judge rules it inadmissible before the jury hears it. Ruiz's attorney does not renew the offer. The appellate court follows its local rule of court that a definitive pretrial ruling preserves the claim without further objection.
Rita Russell is convicted of a weapons offense. The judge plans to increase the sentence based on a hate-crime finding made by the court alone. The court's local rule of court requires the jury to decide any fact that raises the statutory maximum, so the enhancement is set aside.
Rachel Ramirez and her partner advertise low-cost legal services in a newspaper. The state bar disciplines them under its local rule of court banning such ads. The court holds the rule of court unconstitutional as applied to truthful fee information.
Royal Crest Hotels is sued in California for an accident that occurred abroad. The plaintiffs rely on a subsidiary's contacts. The court applies its local rule of court requiring the defendant's own contacts with the forum and dismisses for lack of personal jurisdiction.
A rule of court addresses matters of practice and procedure within that court, such as how evidence is offered, how objections are preserved, and when a witness is deemed unavailable.
Supporting sources
Yes. A rule of court may treat a post-breach memorandum as sufficient to satisfy the statute, curing what would otherwise be a procedural defect under older interpretations.
Supporting sources
Yes. Once the court rules definitively on the record, the rule of court dispenses with any requirement to renew the objection or offer of proof to preserve the issue for appeal.
Supporting sources
…that, as here, has yet to emerge from the state courts ripened for review on the federal issue. II Nonetheless, because the Court rules on the minimum-contacts question, I feel impelled to express my view. While evidence derived through discovery might satisfy me that minimum contacts are lacking in a given case, I am…