The Sixth District Court of Appeal requires electronic filing through TrueFiling.
If you have not already done so, you must register with TrueFiling to electronically file documents in the court of appeal. TrueFiling is a private vendor that has contracted with the state to facilitate the electronic filing system. There is a fee for using TrueFiling, but panel attorneys can be reimbursed when submitting a compensation claim.
For those not familiar with TrueFiling, there is plenty of information available on the CCAP website. There is also information and training available at the website of the Court of Appeal. To learn how to TrueFile, go to https://truefiling.com/resources for detailed instructions. You can also find videos on YouTube. Again, call TrueFiling tech support for help if you have any problems.
With TrueFiling, SDAP and the Attorney General can be electronically served. The email address for serving SDAP is servesdap@sdap.org. The email address for the Attorney General is SFAGDocketing@doj.ca.gov. When you first register for TrueFiling, you should be sure to enter the email addresses for both SDAP and the Attorney General. In this way, you will be able to electronically serve our respective offices in all cases. However, the client, the superior court, district attorney and county counsel must still be served a paper copy by mail. Going forward, SDAP will be communicating with the trial courts and various District Attorneys’ offices in order to encourage them to accept electronic service.
Although the California Supreme Court has yet to institute TrueFiling, counsel may serve a petition for review on SDAP at servesdap@sdap.org. With respect to copies of client correspondence, counsel should not use the servesdap cite. Rather, copies of client correspondence should be sent to the email address for the project buddy on the case.
If you have technical questions about how to use TrueFiling or need to troubleshoot problems you are having, you should start by contacting TrueFiling by email at support@truefiling.com or by phone at (855) 959-8868 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday-Friday, Pacific Standard Time. SDAP is available, as always, for consultations regarding filing requirements.
Counsel should carefully review the rules of court which governs electronic filing in the Sixth District. The court has provided us with guidance regarding two aspects of the rule that differ from the local rules in other districts.
Finally, any expense for the use of TrueFiling is reimbursable on both interim and final claims. TrueFiling expenses should be billed on line 9 of the expenses form.
The first time may take a while, but after a couple briefs or motions it will become a routine process.
(Updated December 16, 2022)
