Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: Order to show cause?

The Order to Show Cause (OSC) should say what it is about; read it very carefully and you should get some idea what the court will expect you to talk about. This is not where you prove your case; that is what the trial is for.

Was the OSC issued by the court or did it come from plaintiff's counsel? If the former, the court may have noticed that you did not claim to have served the plaintiff and may want to determine whether to sanction you. If the latter, it may be that the plaintiff learned you had filed an answer without serving him and is seeking sanctions against you. There are many other possibilities here; in fact, it may be that the OSC has nothing to do with you at all.

Most judges will be understanding with a pro se party (i.e. one without a lawyer) who makes a mistake like this -- but only once. You should bring a copy of your answer to court and give it to your opponent, but you should also be prepared for a stern lecture from the court, especially since you have waited until late afternoon on the day before the hearing before even trying to figure out what to do.

You should also think very seiously about getting a lawyer or about learning the rules in detail so that you don't make such an error again. Even patient judges will not accept an ongoing problem of pro se litigants failing to follow the rules.

Some judges are more tolerant of these mistakes than others, while some are not tolerant at all. It is possible that the judge will sanction you severly for this or even dismiss your case, depending on the specific facts.

Re: Order to show cause?

Thank you for your inquiry.

Normally an Order to Show Cause (or "OSC") requires one or both of the parties to do something.

It might ask that the plaintiff explain (or "show cause") why they are seeking default when there is an answer on file, or for you to explain/show cause why you did not serve plaintiff with a copy of the answer.

Read the notice carefully, and be prepared in court to address and remedy whatever issues relate to you.

Best of luck, but if you have other questions, please feel free to email me directly at [email protected].

Re: Order to show cause?

Better late than never, go to the hearing, apologize profusely, pled ignorance of the service rule, and hope the judge doesn't sanction [fine] you for not following the rules. Your answer is filed, so there is actually no default, it is the failure to serve a copy that got you in trouble.

There won't be a second chance from this judge, learn and follow the rules, or hire an attorney.