Court Staff Assistance
Court staff are happy to help you if they can. However, court staff are allowed to help you only in certain ways, since they must be fair to everyone. This is a list of things court staff may and may not do for you.
Court Staff May:
o Explain and answer general questions about how the court works.
o Provide you with the number of the local lawyer referral service and any legal services program.
o Provide you with the number of any family court programs, parent/child education, mediation, community services and domestic violence resources.
o Give you general information about court rules, procedures and practices.
o Provide court schedules.
o Provide your court file for your review.
Court Staff May Not:
o Tell you what to say in court.
o Give you an opinion about what will happen in your case.
o Talk to the judge for you.
o Let you talk to the judge outside of court or arrange for you to talk to the judge outside of court.
o Change an order signed by a judge.
o Provide you with contact information for another party.
o Provide you with any legal advice.
o Recommend a particular lawyer.