PUBLIC NOTICE ELECTRONIC SERVICE IN FAMILY LAW MATTERS EFFECTIVE: JULY 1, 2025

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure § 1010.6, California Rules of Court, rule 2.251, and Orange County Local Rule 700.7

EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2025, COUNSEL FOR ALL REPRESENTED PARTIES IN FAMILY LAW CASES will now be served electronically. The Orange County Superior Court (“Court”) will use the application eService to transmit, deliver, or serve required documents from the Court in Family Law matters.

Code of Civil Procedure § 1010.6, California Rules of Court, rule 2.251, and Orange County Local Rule 700.7 require the use of electronic service and filing in civil cases, including Family Law matters.

• Electronic service can be performed either by directly transmitting documents to an email address or by sending a notice with a link to view the document.
• Attorneys that appear on a case must accept electronic service.
• Represented parties will be required to accept eService, while self-represented parties will have the option to receive electronic notices.
• Courts will be required to electronically serve their own documents to any party who has consented or is under mandatory e-service rules.

Immediate Action Requested: To comply with state law, the Court is immediately requesting all attorneys with active Family Law cases “provide their email address for receiving electronic notice via eService.

To perform this task, attorneys are instructed to submit Judicial Council form Notice of Change of Address (MC-040) if their firm has not provided an email address. This form will need to be completed for each active case your firm may have. The form can be filed in person at the attorney window, in the courtroom at your next hearing, or electronically via Odyssey File and Serve (OFS).

Implementation: In the coming weeks, the Court will be sending notices via email if the Court has an email address on file and via mail if no email address is on file. If the Court does not receive a request to update the eService email address using form Notice of Change of Address (MC-040) or Notice of Change of Electronic Service Address (EFS-010), prior to July 1, 2025, email addresses on file as of July 1, 2025 will be designated the eService email address.

What to Know About eService: Under California Rule of Court 2.251, electronic service is equivalent to service by mail, express mail, overnight delivery or fax transmission.

• Attorneys are required to accept eService, while self-represented litigants may opt-in by filing a consent form. eService from the Court will have the same legal effect as service by mail.
• A party who is served a document by the Court via eService will be provided an additional two (2) court days under Code of Civil Procedure § 1010.6(a)(3(B) to respond.
• Express consent is required for self-represented litigants who choose eService. Consent may be provided by filing form EFS-005-CV Consent to Electronic Serviceand Notice of Electronic Notification Address .

eService enables attorneys and self-represented litigants to receive case documents electronically from the Court, streamlining case progression and offering the following benefits

• Efficiency and Timeliness: Attorneys will be automatically enrolled in eService, which will provide faster notification and document delivery. Self-represented litigants who opt for eService will also experience quicker service than traditional mailing methods.
• Convenience and Flexibility: Case documents can be securely accessed electronically from any location, provided users maintain an up-to-date email address for eService.
• Enhanced Security: Secure links with multi-factor authentication ensure document integrity.
• Automatic Proof of Service: eService provides automatic proof of service for recipients.

Please see below for more details on eService:

1. Opting In: Self-represented litigants may opt-in for eService by filing EFS-005-CV Consent to Electronic Service and Notice of Electronic Notification Address.
2. eService Lists: The Court will maintain an eService list, including the email addresses of litigants who consent to eService.
3. Maintaining eService Addresses: Any changes to an eService address must be promptly updated by the litigant or attorney to ensure seamless communication. Parties may submit a completed MC-040 form to update their email address of record at any time.
4. Service Completion: Rule 2.251 outlines that service by electronic notification is deemed complete per Code of Civil Procedures § 1010.6 when the electronic notification of service of the document is sent.
5. Secure Access: All eService notices from the Court will be sent from no-reply@occourts.org and include a secure link to access served documents, with a time-sensitive code to ensure security. Access will require multi-factor authentication to ensure security and integrity.

For questions or technical assistance with eService, court users are encouraged to use the Court Questions option in the Orange County Superior Court public website.

Click here to view the official public notice.