How to Fill Out and File Form EFS-005-CV: Consent to Electronic Service

Form EFS-005-CV is the California Judicial Council form you file to consent to electronic service in a civil case. Completing it tells the court and every other party that they can serve motions, notices, and other papers on you by email at the address you list, instead of by mail or personal delivery. The form is optional unless a court order or local rule already requires electronic service, and once filed it stays in effect until you withdraw consent on a separate form.

When This Is the Right Form

Use EFS-005-CV when you want to opt in to electronic service in a civil case pending in a California Superior Court. Under California Rules of Court, Rule 2.251, a party shows “affirmative consent” to electronic service either by agreeing through an electronic filing service provider or by filing this form with the court and serving it on every other party.¹ EFS-005-CV is the paper route to that consent.

A few boundaries worth knowing before you spend time on the form. Self-represented litigants are never forced to accept electronic service; even in cases where the court has ordered mandatory e-service, self-represented parties must be served by traditional methods unless they choose to consent, and this form is how they make that choice.¹ Attorneys in a case already subject to mandatory e-filing do not need to file EFS-005-CV separately, because mandatory e-filing carries its own service obligation. And if you want to switch back to paper service later, you use a different form (EFS-006), not this one.

What to Gather Before You Start

The form is one page, but a wrong case number or a typo in your email address can cause real trouble. Documents served to the address you listed still count as served, even if that address was wrong. Pull these together first:

Your full legal name, street address, city, state, ZIP, phone, fax (if any), and email. If you have an attorney, their name, firm, and California State Bar number.²
The Superior Court county, branch name, and the branch’s street and mailing addresses.
The exact case name (for example, “Doe v. Smith”) and the case number.
The specific email address where you want court documents sent. Pick one you check every day. This becomes your official address for receiving legal papers.

Filling Out the Form

Download the current version from the California Courts self-help portal; it was last revised July 1, 2016.³ You can type into the PDF or print it and fill it in by hand.

Header

In the top-left block, enter the attorney or self-represented party’s identifying information: name, firm (if any), State Bar number (if any), street address, city, state, ZIP, phone, fax, and email. Below that, write the name of the party you represent, or your own name if you are self-represented. The top-right block takes the court’s name, county, street address, mailing address, city, ZIP, and branch name. Under the court block, enter the case name and case number.²

Item 1 – Consent

Check the box describing your role in the case: plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, respondent, or other. Fill in the party name. By completing this item you are consenting to electronic service of all notices and documents in the case.²

Item 2 – Electronic Service Address

Enter the exact email address where you want documents delivered. Read it character by character before you move on. A wrong letter sends your papers to a dead inbox, and you may not learn about a deadline until it has already passed.

Sign and date the form at the bottom.

Filing and Serving the Form

File the completed form with the clerk at the Superior Court branch where your case is pending. There is generally no filing fee. Filing alone is not enough. You also have to serve a copy on every other party or attorney in the case so they know where to send documents.

Service must be done by someone at least 18 years old who is not a party to the case.⁴ After serving the form, that person completes a proof of service and files it with the court. Use Form POS-030 if the copy was mailed, Form POS-020 if it was personally delivered,⁵ or Form POS-040, a general proof-of-service form that covers mail, personal delivery, overnight delivery, messenger service, and fax in a single document.⁶ Filing the proof of service is what closes the loop. Without it, the court has no record that the other side knows about your consent.

What Changes for Your Deadlines

Once the form is filed and served, every party can serve documents on you electronically at the address in Item 2. Treat that inbox the way you would treat a mailbox for certified letters. Missing a document because you did not check your email is not a defense to a missed deadline.

There is one timing wrinkle in your favor. Under Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6, any deadline triggered by service of a document is extended by two court days when service is electronic.⁷ That extension does not apply to a short list of critical filings, including notices of intent to move for a new trial, motions to vacate judgment, and notices of appeal. For those, the original statutory deadline controls no matter how the triggering document was served.

Withdrawing Consent Later

If you file EFS-005-CV and later want to go back to paper service, do not refile EFS-005-CV. California has a separate form for that: Form EFS-006, Withdrawal of Consent to Electronic Service.⁸ Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6 confirms that a party who gave express consent can withdraw it at any time by filing the appropriate Judicial Council form.⁷

Only the party who consented, or that party’s attorney, can file the withdrawal. After filing EFS-006 with the court, serve it on every other party and file a proof of service, just as you did with the original consent form. Once the withdrawal takes effect, the other parties have to switch to mail or personal delivery for everything that follows. One caveat: if you are an attorney or a represented party in a case where a local rule or court order requires electronic service, withdrawing voluntary consent does not override that mandatory obligation. You would need a court order or a hardship exemption instead.

1
Judicial Branch of California. California Rules of Court 2026 – Rule 2.251 Electronic Service
2
Judicial Council of California. Consent to Electronic Service and Notice of Electronic Service Address
3
California Courts | Self Help Guide. Consent to Electronic Service and Notice of Electronic Service Address
4
Judicial Council of California. Proof of Service by First-Class Mail – Civil
5
Judicial Council of California. Proof of Personal Service – Civil
6
Judicial Council of California. Proof of Service – Civil
7
California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure CCP 1010.6 – Electronic Service and Filing
8
California Courts | Self Help Guide. Withdrawal of Consent to Electronic Service (Electronic Filing and Service)