This page tells you about:

1. When and how?
2. Serve and file your statement
3. What to expect

1. When and how?
   
   When you get a trial date, you’ll get a date for your Mandatory Settlement Conference.
   
   In general, if your trial is on Monday, you’ll have your Mandatory Settlement Conference on the Wednesday before the trial. Short trials under a half day do not have Mandatory Settlement Conferences.
   
   You’ll probably have your hearing in the Court building.
   
   A temporary judge will hear your Settlement Conference. Temporary judges (called "Pro Tems", short for pro tempore) are lawyers with a lot of experience. They volunteer to be the judges for your Settlement Conference.
   
   A temporary judge:
   
   
• Meets with the people in the case, or their lawyers,
• Hears the facts of the case, and
• Tries to find a solution that everyone accepts.

Settlement conferences work when a lawyer with experience helps the parties find a solution.

2. Serve and file your statement
   
   Everyone in the case has to file a written statement. It should say how your settlement talks are going. File it at least 5 court days before your Mandatory Settlement Conference. You have to have it served on everyone else in the case.
   
   
3. What to expect
   
   Your Mandatory Settlement Conference is a time to try to settle your case. Be ready to talk seriously about how to solve your case.

More information for the Plaintiff and Defendant:

• Before You Sue - For the Plaintiff
• I've Been Sued - For the Defendant
• For the Defendant and the Plaintiff
• Trial Setting Conference
• Getting Ready for the Trial
• The Trial
• After the Trial