California Rules of Court 5.151: Ex Parte Emergency Custody Orders

California Rules of Court 5.151 sets the procedure for asking a family law judge to issue a temporary emergency order, sometimes called an ex parte order, before the normal 16-court-day notice period runs. To get one, you must make an affirmative factual showing of immediate danger, irreparable harm, or another statutory basis for relief on shortened notice, file the required Judicial Council forms, and give the other party notice no later than 10:00 a.m. on the court day before the judge will consider the request.¹

What Rule 5.151 Actually Covers

The rule authorizes three categories of emergency relief in a pending family law case:¹

Orders to prevent immediate danger or irreparable harm to a party or the children, including emergency changes to custody or visitation.
Orders to prevent the immediate loss or damage of property that is subject to division, such as stopping an unauthorized sale of the family home or the draining of a joint account.
Procedural orders, such as shortening time for a hearing, shortening time for service, or rescheduling a hearing or trial.

The procedural category matters because it doesn’t require a safety crisis. If you need a hearing sooner than the regular calendar allows, an emergency request for shortened time can be appropriate on its own.

The Legal Standard

The rule requires an “affirmative factual showing” in a declaration based on personal knowledge, describing irreparable harm, immediate danger, or another statutory ground for shortened notice.¹ You need concrete facts. A general worry, a strategic advantage, or an inconvenience will not clear the bar.

For property emergencies, the harm must be imminent. Evidence that a sale is already underway or that funds are actively being dissipated meets the standard. A concern that your spouse might eventually sell an asset does not.

If you have previously asked for the same order, your declaration must disclose that and state whether it was granted.¹

Extra Requirements for Emergency Custody Orders

Custody and visitation emergencies have their own layer of rules. Family Code section 3064 requires a showing of either immediate harm to the child or an immediate risk that the child will be removed from California. “Immediate harm” includes recent or ongoing domestic violence by a parent and sexual abuse of the child. The court must also consider whether a parent has illegal access to firearms or ammunition, including possession that violates a restraining order or probation condition.²

On top of the general filing requirements, a custody-related emergency application must include:¹

A full description of the most recent incidents showing immediate harm or risk of removal, with the specific date of each incident.
An explanation of the current custody and visitation arrangement and how the requested order would change it.
A copy of any existing custody order, if available, or a description of where and with whom the child currently lives if no order exists.
A completed Declaration Under Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (form FL-105), updated if one has already been filed.

Weak custody applications usually fail here. A declaration that only says the parent is worried, without dates and specific events, will not meet the standard.

Forms You Need to File

The core paperwork comes from the Judicial Council:³

Request for Order (FL-300). Check the “Temporary Emergency Orders” box on page 1. For custody requests, also check item 2 on page 2; for property, check item 5 on page 3; describe the emergency in item 9 on page 4.
Temporary Emergency Court Orders (FL-305). This is your proposed order, which the judge signs if the request is granted.⁴
Declaration Regarding Notice (FL-303). Documents how and when you gave notice, or why notice should be waived.
Income and Expense Declaration (FL-150). Required whenever the request involves anything financial, including support or payment of a bill.

Every application also needs a personal-knowledge declaration describing the events that created the emergency and explaining why the matter cannot wait for the regular calendar.¹

Notice to the Other Party

Rule 5.165 sets the notice deadline. You must give notice to all parties or their attorneys so they receive it no later than 10:00 a.m. on the court day before the judge will consider the request. The notice must state the relief you are asking for and the date, time, and place of the application.⁵

You must also try to find out whether the other party plans to appear or file written opposition, and report what you learned in your FL-303 declaration, including how and when notice was given and what response, if any, you received.¹ Notice by phone, in person, or through allowed electronic means is acceptable. Missing the deadline without a valid excuse usually ends the application.

When Notice Can Be Shortened or Waived

Two exceptions exist, and they are not the same thing.

If you gave notice but missed the 10:00 a.m. deadline, you can ask the court to accept shortened notice by showing “exceptional circumstances” in your declaration.⁵

If you want to skip notice entirely, you need a sworn declaration showing good cause on one of the grounds listed in Rule 5.165:⁵

Giving notice would defeat the purpose of the order.
Notice would result in immediate and irreparable harm to you or the children.
Notice would result in immediate and irreparable damage to or loss of property in the case.
Both parties previously agreed that notice would not be necessary for this type of request.
You made reasonable, good-faith efforts to give notice and further attempts would be futile or unduly burdensome.

One boundary to know: cases filed under the Domestic Violence Prevention Act follow a separate notice framework and are excluded from Rule 5.165.⁵ If you are seeking a domestic violence restraining order, the procedures come from Family Code section 6300 and related statutes, not from Rule 5.151.

Filing, the Hearing, and Serving the Order

File the complete package with the family law clerk at your local superior court. Most courts want these filings early in the morning so the clerk can route them to the assigned judge, and local rules will control how the hearing date is reserved and how the filing fee is paid.³

The judge usually reviews the application the same day, either in chambers or in a brief hearing. If the standard is met, the judge signs the FL-305 and it becomes the temporary order. If not, the request is denied and the matter is generally set for a regular hearing.

A signed order does not bind the other party until they have been personally served. Someone who is at least 18 and not a party to the case must hand-deliver the signed orders and your original application to the other side.⁶ The server then completes a Proof of Personal Service (FL-330), which you file with the court.⁷

How Long the Order Lasts

Emergency orders are short-lived by design. Under Family Code section 242, a hearing on the underlying matter must be held within 21 days of the order being granted, or within 25 days if the court finds good cause for the extension. The temporary orders remain in effect until that hearing.⁸

If the hearing does not happen within that window, the case can still be heard, but the temporary order becomes unenforceable unless the judge specifically extends it.⁸ Both sides have a real stake in the follow-up date. For the person who obtained the order, missing it means the protections lapse. For the person subject to it, missing it means losing the chance to contest before the judge makes longer-term decisions.

If You Received an Emergency Application

You have the right to appear and oppose the request, and the applicant is required to ask you in advance whether you intend to appear or submit written opposition.¹

Written opposition must be served on all appearing parties at the first reasonable opportunity. Under Rule 3.1206, the court generally will not hold the hearing unless that service has been completed, absent exceptional circumstances.⁹ The standard form is the Responsive Declaration (FL-320), and it should address the specific claims in the applicant’s declaration with your own facts. The timeline is tight, so preparation happens quickly.

The Status Quo Disclosure and Sanctions Risk

If the order you are requesting would change the current situation, Rule 5.151 requires you to explain what the status quo is and how your proposed order would alter it. Skipping that disclosure can lead the court to award attorney’s fees and costs to the other party for what it takes to restore the original arrangement.¹

Frivolous or bad-faith emergency filings also carry sanctions exposure under Family Code section 271, which allows a judge to order payment of the other side’s attorney’s fees and costs when a party’s conduct frustrates the policy of resolving family law cases cooperatively. Financial need is not required for a section 271 award; the focus is on conduct that drove up unnecessary costs. The court will consider the paying party’s ability to pay and will not impose a sanction that creates an unreasonable financial burden.¹⁰

1
Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 5.151 – Request for Temporary Emergency (Ex Parte) Orders; Application; Required Documents
2
California Legislative Information. California Family Code 3064
3
Judicial Branch of California. FL-300-INFO Information Sheet for Request for Order (Family Law)
4
California Courts. Temporary Emergency (Ex Parte) Orders (FL-305)
5
Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 5.165 – Requirements for Notice
6
Judicial Branch of California. Information Sheet for Proof of Personal Service
7
California Courts. Proof of Personal Service (FL-330)
8
California Legislative Information. California Code Family Code 242
9
Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1206 – Service of Papers
10
California Legislative Information. California Family Code 271