Contra Costa Remote Appearance: Form RA-010, Zoom, and Objections

To appear remotely at a Contra Costa Superior Court hearing, use Zoom through the link posted for your assigned department on the court’s Court Calendars and Remote Appearances page. California Code of Civil Procedure section 367.75 gives you the right to appear remotely in civil cases, and Contra Costa Local Rule 2.180 designates Zoom as the court’s sole remote platform across civil, family, probate, and small claims departments.¹² Whether you need to file paperwork first depends entirely on the type of hearing.

Does Your Hearing Qualify for Remote Appearance

Civil, family, probate, and small claims proceedings are broadly open to remote appearance under CCP 367.75, from routine status conferences up through contested evidentiary hearings and trials.¹ A judge can still require you to appear in person if the technology or audio quality is inadequate, an interpreter cannot work effectively remotely, or the judge finds that being in the room would materially help resolve the matter. If those problems surface mid-hearing, the judge can pause and reset it in person.³

Criminal cases run on a different statute, Penal Code section 977, with stricter rules. Misdemeanor defendants who consent can generally appear remotely for most proceedings other than jury and court trials. Felony defendants must be physically present for arraignment, plea, preliminary hearing, any evidence-taking portion of trial, and sentencing; other felony proceedings allow remote appearance with a waiver of physical presence. Eligible criminal proceedings use the same department Zoom links.⁴

When You Need to File Form RA-010

Contra Costa waives the notice-of-remote-appearance filing for the most common hearings. You do not need to file Form RA-010 for civil case management conferences, law and motion hearings, civil ex parte applications (other than domestic violence restraining orders), or short-cause family law matters. You still owe the other parties notice under California Rules of Court, rule 3.672, but the parties can waive that step by oral agreement on the record or in writing.²

You do need to file Form RA-010 for evidentiary hearings, settlement conferences, and trials.⁵ The deadline depends on how much notice you received of the hearing itself:

Evidentiary hearings and trials set with 15 or more court days’ notice, and all small claims trials: file RA-010 at least 10 court days before the hearing.
Evidentiary hearings set with fewer than 15 court days’ notice (including protective order hearings): the moving party files with the moving papers or at least 5 court days before; the responding party files by 2 p.m. the court day before the hearing.
Non-evidentiary proceedings set with 3 or more court days’ notice: file at least 2 court days before.

Miss a deadline and you can still ask the judge for permission. The court may grant it on a finding of good cause, unforeseen circumstances, or that a remote appearance would promote access to justice.⁶

How to Join Your Zoom Hearing

On the hearing date, open the court’s Court Calendars and Remote Appearances page, find your department number, expand its section, and click the Zoom link. You’ll be held in a virtual waiting room until the clerk or judge admits you.⁴

Log in early. Updates, audio glitches, and camera permissions are much easier to fix before your case is called. Once you’re in, expect to be muted until the clerk calls your matter, and don’t disconnect until the judge dismisses you. Sit in a quiet, well-lit space with a plain background, and skip virtual backgrounds. The proceeding carries the same formality as a courtroom appearance.

Test your setup ahead of the date using Zoom’s built-in test meeting. Poor audio is one of the specific grounds a judge can cite to end a remote hearing and require in-person appearance, so this preparation is not optional.¹ The court also notes that it is not responsible for the Zoom platform; software problems get directed to Zoom.⁴

Phone Dial-In as a Backup

If Zoom video fails, you can call in:

Primary: 1-669-254-5252
Alternate: 1-669-900-6833
Toll-free (Zoom Government): 1-833-568-8864

Use the Meeting ID and Password shown under your department, follow the prompts, and press *6 to mute or unmute. One important limit: Local Rule 2.180 requires video for contested hearings, and audio-only is not allowed unless the judge specifically permits it.² If you have to dial in for a contested matter, tell the clerk right away so the judge can decide whether to proceed or continue.

Objecting to the Other Side’s Remote Appearance

If your opponent files an RA-010 for an evidentiary hearing or trial and you believe in-person attendance is necessary, file Judicial Council Form RA-015, Opposition to Remote Proceeding at Evidentiary Hearing or Trial, explaining why.⁷ If a judge has already ordered a hearing conducted remotely, an objection follows the procedure in Rule 3.672(h).² The judge weighs the same statutory factors that govern remote appearances generally.

Recording and Conduct Rules

A remote hearing carries the same restrictions as a physical courtroom. Under California Rules of Court, rule 1.150, no one may photograph, record, or broadcast a court proceeding without the judge’s written permission.⁸ Local Rule 2.180 spells this out for Zoom: no recording, no photographs, no screenshots of any part of the hearing. Violations carry the same sanctions available for recording in a physical courtroom.²

Disability Accommodations

If a disability affects your ability to participate remotely, request accommodations using Judicial Council Form MC-410, the Disability Accommodation Request.⁹ File it well before your hearing so the court has time to arrange captioning, an interpreter, or accessible document formats. The court grants or denies the request on the same form.

If You Can’t Afford Filing Fees

Filing Form RA-010 itself has no fee, but the underlying motion or first appearance that brought you into court does. California offers fee waivers on Form FW-001. You automatically qualify if you receive public benefits like Medi-Cal, CalFresh, SSI, CalWORKs, or county general assistance, and you can also qualify based on low income. The waiver covers court fees for the case, expires 60 days after final disposition, and the court can recover waived fees from any settlement of $10,000 or more.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 367.75 – Remote Appearances
2
Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa. Local Rules of Court
3
Judicial Branch of California. Rule 3.672 – Remote Proceedings
4
Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa. Court Calendars and Remote Appearances
5
California Courts | Self Help Guide. Notice of Remote Appearance (RA-010)
6
Judicial Council of California. RA-010 – Notice of Remote Appearance
7
California Courts | Self Help Guide. Opposition to Remote Proceeding at Evidentiary Hearing or Trial
8
Judicial Branch of California. Rule 1.150 – Photographing, Recording, and Broadcasting in Court
9
California Courts | Self Help Guide. Disability Accommodation Request