To continue a hearing in California, you file a written motion showing “good cause” under California Rules of Court, Rule 3.1332, serve it on every other party at least 16 court days before the hearing, and let the judge decide. If the other side agrees, you can file a stipulation instead, but the judge still has the final call. Postponements are disfavored, and the burden is on you to prove the hearing cannot go forward as scheduled.
What Counts as Good Cause
Rule 3.1332 lists seven categories of circumstances that can qualify:
- A key witness is unavailable because of death, illness, or another excusable reason, and their testimony is essential.
- A party can’t attend due to illness, death, or similar circumstances beyond their control.
- Your attorney can’t appear because of illness, death, or another excusable reason.
- You recently substituted counsel, and new counsel needs time to get up to speed, if the change serves the interests of justice.
- A party was recently added and hasn’t had a fair chance to prepare or conduct discovery.
- You’ve been diligent but still can’t get essential testimony, documents, or other evidence in time.
- Something significant and unexpected shifted the status of the case, leaving it unready for trial.
Failing to prepare on time doesn’t qualify. Neither does simply wanting more time. Even mutual agreement between the parties doesn’t automatically satisfy the good cause standard, though it helps.1Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1332 – Motion or Application for Continuance of Trial
What the Judge Weighs After Good Cause
Showing good cause is the entry ticket, not the decision. Rule 3.1332(d) lists eleven factors the court considers.
How close is the trial date, and how long a delay are you asking for? A two-week postponement six months out is a different ask than a two-month delay the week before. Has the case already been continued? Is there an alternative that would solve the problem without moving the date? Would a continuance prejudice the other side or their witnesses? Does the case carry a preferential trial setting, like one involving an elderly plaintiff or a minor, where delay carries extra cost? Is your lawyer stuck in another trial? Did all parties agree? What’s the impact on the court’s own calendar?
The overarching question is whether the interests of justice favor a continuance, favor proceeding, or favor granting a continuance with conditions attached. Judges sometimes take that third path: they’ll move the date but impose deadlines for specific tasks in the meantime.2Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1332 – Motion or Application for Continuance of Trial – Section: Other Factors to Be Considered
The Paperwork You File
Rule 3.1112 requires at least three components: a notice of hearing on the motion, the motion itself, and a memorandum of points and authorities laying out the legal basis. You’ll also file a declaration — the sworn statement of facts that actually justifies the request.3Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1112 – Motions and Other Pleadings
The notice tells the court and the other parties when the motion will be heard. Include the case name, case number, current hearing or trial date, and the date you’re requesting for the motion hearing. The memorandum connects your facts to the specific subsection of Rule 3.1332 you’re relying on.
The declaration is where requests are won or lost. Sign it under penalty of perjury and lay out exactly why the continuance is necessary. Include specific dates, names, and what you’ve already done to try to solve the problem without a postponement. Propose one or two alternative dates. A vague statement that says “I need more time” without concrete facts is the fastest way to get denied. For a medical reason, attach a note from your doctor confirming you can’t attend and estimating when you’ll be able to appear. The court doesn’t need the full diagnosis, but it does need enough detail to evaluate whether the condition is real and temporary.
Most civil continuance motions are prepared on standard pleading paper rather than a Judicial Council form. Specific situations, like domestic violence restraining orders and small claims cases, have their own forms.
Filing Deadlines, Service, and Fees
Under Code of Civil Procedure 1005(b), you must serve and file your motion papers at least 16 court days before the hearing. Court days exclude weekends and court holidays, so count carefully. Add five calendar days for mail service within California, two calendar days for overnight delivery or fax, and two court days for electronic service.4California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 1005
Electronic service is now standard for represented parties. Under CCP 1010.6, any party represented by an attorney who has appeared in the case must accept electronic service. Unrepresented parties can consent but aren’t required to.5California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 1010.6
After serving, file a proof of service with the court documenting who was served, when, how, and which documents were delivered.
The motion filing fee is $60 as of 2026, unless you’ve already paid a first-paper filing fee and this is your initial motion. If you can’t afford court fees, apply for a fee waiver using Judicial Council form FW-001. You qualify if you receive certain public benefits like Medi-Cal or CalFresh, if your household income falls below the thresholds listed on the form, or if paying fees would prevent you from covering basic living expenses.6Judicial Branch of California. Statewide Civil Fee Schedule Effective January 1, 2026
When Both Sides Agree: Stipulation
If everyone agrees a continuance makes sense, you can skip the adversarial motion and file a stipulation. It’s a written agreement signed by all parties or their attorneys, stating the current hearing date, the proposed new date, and the reason.
Contact the other side, find dates that work, draft the stipulation, get signatures, and submit it with a proposed order for the judge to sign. Whether all parties agreed is one of the eleven factors the judge considers, so a stipulation carries real weight. But the judge can still reject it if it conflicts with the court’s calendar, if the case has a preferential trial setting, or if the continuance would harm the interests of justice. A signed stipulation is not a guarantee.
Discovery Deadlines Don’t Automatically Move
This catches people out. A continuance of your trial date does not reopen discovery. Under CCP 2024.020, discovery must be completed at least 30 days before the date initially set for trial, and discovery motions must be heard at least 15 days before that original date. When the trial gets postponed, those deadlines stay tied to the original date unless you act.7California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 2024.020
If you need more discovery time, file a separate motion under CCP 2024.050 asking the court to reopen it. Include the request in your continuance motion if you know you’ll need it. Waiting until after the trial is continued to realize your window already closed is hard to fix.
When There Isn’t Time: Ex Parte
If something comes up too late for the 16-court-day notice, you may need to file an ex parte application. That’s the emergency track, and courts hold it to a higher standard: you must show that immediate and irreparable harm would result if the hearing proceeds as scheduled.
Rule 3.1203 requires you to notify all other parties of your intent to seek the ex parte order by 10:00 a.m. on the court day before your ex parte appearance. Later notice requires an explanation of the exceptional circumstances.8Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1203 – Time of Notice to Other Parties
Your application must include a declaration describing what notice you gave, when, and how. If you couldn’t reach the other side despite real effort, describe each attempt. Rule 3.1204 spells out the content requirements.9Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 3.1204 – Contents of Notice and Declaration Regarding Notice
Practices vary. Some judges use the ex parte process to shorten the notice period for a standard motion rather than granting the continuance itself, allowing the full motion to be heard on an expedited timeline.
Active-Duty Military: A Mandatory Stay
If you’re on active duty or within 90 days of leaving military service, federal law overrides the ordinary discretionary framework. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. § 3932, the court must stay proceedings for at least 90 days when a qualifying servicemember requests it. The initial stay is not discretionary.
You need to submit two documents: your own statement explaining how military duties prevent you from appearing and estimating when you’ll be available, and a letter from your commanding officer confirming that your duties prevent attendance and that military leave isn’t authorized. Your statement alone won’t do it.
Filing this request isn’t a general appearance and doesn’t waive any defenses, including challenges to personal jurisdiction. Additional stays past the initial 90 days are discretionary, and if the court denies an additional stay, it must appoint counsel to represent you.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3932 – Stay of Proceedings When Servicemember Has Notice
If the Court Denies the Request
A denied continuance means the hearing or trial goes forward on the original date. Be ready to proceed. There’s no automatic second bite.
Review on appeal is narrow. Trial judges have broad discretion over their calendars, and an appellate court won’t overturn the decision unless there was no rational basis for the denial and it unfairly prejudiced your ability to present your case. And you generally can’t appeal the denial right away. It’s an interlocutory order, so you typically raise it as an issue in your appeal of the final judgment after the case ends. A premature appeal will almost certainly be dismissed.
Sanctions for Bad-Faith Requests
A continuance request that is frivolous or designed solely to delay can result in financial sanctions. Under CCP 128.5, the court can order a party or their attorney to pay the other side’s reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, if the motion was made in bad faith. Frivolous here means totally without merit or filed only to harass.11California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 128.5
The statute has a 21-day safe harbor. If the other side moves for sanctions, they must serve the motion on you but can’t file it with the court for 21 days, giving you a window to withdraw or correct the offending motion. Sanctions must be proportional to what’s needed to deter similar conduct, and the court must issue a written order explaining its reasoning. The sanctions motion has to be filed separately, not bundled into an opposition brief.
The risk is real but shouldn’t discourage a legitimate request. Courts understand that reasonable people disagree about whether good cause exists. The statute targets motions that are completely baseless or transparently designed to run out the clock, not close calls made in good faith.