Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

A case management conference typically lasts five or ten minutes, although your lawyer may have to wait an hour or so until the judge gets down the list of cases to yours. The purpose of an CMC is to allow the court to determine whether and when to require the parties to attempt alternate dispute resolution (mediation, etc.), to determine when the case should be set for trial, to anticipate and handle procedural issues such as discovery, and the like. The judge presiding at a CMC will not usually take testimony, hear evidence, or get into the nitty-gritty issues of the case. The parties may be present if they wish, but most CMCs are handled by the attorneys. Prior to the CMC, each party must file a Case Management Statement on a standard Judicial Council form, and the preprinted questions on the form will give you a pretty good idea of the types of issues handled at a CMC.