Counting Court Days in California: The Rules Behind a Court Date Calculator

Last updated: November 2026. Reviewed by Pavel Kolmogorov, California business litigation attorney (State Bar No. 321018).

The Los Angeles Superior Court publishes an official Court Date Calculator, linked below, that counts court days or calendar days from a date you enter. This page is a guide to the counting rules and does not compute dates. It covers court days and calendar days, judicial holidays, the 16, 9, and 5 court-day motion schedule, and the time added by the method of service, with three worked examples.

Call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online if a deadline in a California business case needs a lawyer's review.

Where to find an official court date calculator

Los Angeles Superior Court Court Date Calculator

The Los Angeles Superior Court Court Date Calculator counts a number of days from a start date. You pick the date, choose court days or calendar days, enter the number, and click Calculate. The court says the tool covers January 2006 through December 2030 and leaves out weekends and court holidays when it counts court days. Method of service is not among those inputs, so adding time for mail or electronic service is up to you.

California Courts holiday schedule

The Judicial Branch of California posts the statewide court holiday schedule for 2026 and 2027, and every court-day count depends on it.

Orange County Superior Court

The Orange County Superior Court home page does not list a date calculator. It links to civil motion date reservations, tentative rulings, and the court's holiday calendar.

If the deadline belongs to a business case in either county, see our Los Angeles and Orange County business litigation pages.

How California counts days

Section 12: leave out the first day and count the last

Code of Civil Procedure section 12 sets the basic count. The day of the triggering event is left out. Every day after it counts, and the last day is included unless it is a holiday. (Code Civ. Proc., § 12.) Ten days after a Monday order is Thursday of the following week.

Sections 12a and 12b: a last day that is a holiday moves forward

When the last day of a period is a holiday, section 12a extends the period through the next day that is not a holiday. A holiday here is every Saturday, every judicial holiday named in section 135, and any day covered by section 12b. (Code Civ. Proc., § 12a, subd. (a).) Only the last day moves.

Under section 12b, a day on which a public office, other than a branch office, is closed all day is treated as a holiday for that office's business. (Code Civ. Proc., § 12b.)

Section 12c: counting backward from a hearing date

When a deadline is a number of days before a hearing, section 12c says to count backward from the hearing date and to leave out the day of the hearing. Extra days owed for a method of service are then counted backward from the day that first count produces. (Code Civ. Proc., § 12c, subds. (a), (b).) The section does not say what to do when added calendar days end on a weekend or holiday. The cautious choice is to serve earlier, on the court day before that weekend or holiday.

Rule 1.10: deadlines set by the Rules of Court

Rule 1.10 applies the same count to deadlines in the California Rules of Court. A last day that falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday moves to the next day that is not a holiday. Unless a law says otherwise, the court may extend or shorten a time set by the rules. Our California Rules of Court page explains other rules by number.

Court days and calendar days

A period stated in plain days is counted in calendar days. Weekends and holidays count, and only the last day gets special treatment. A period stated in court days skips every Saturday, Sunday, and judicial holiday along the way. The statute or rule says which unit applies. A department that stays open on a judicial holiday does not turn that day into a court day for counting. (Code Civ. Proc., § 134, subd. (d).)

Judicial holidays under section 135

Section 135 makes every Saturday, the day after Thanksgiving, and most of the state holidays in Government Code section 6700 judicial holidays. Sundays come in through the state list. A few state holidays are left out, including Lunar New Year, Diwali, Genocide Remembrance Day, Admission Day, and Columbus Day. When a judicial holiday falls on a weekend, the Judicial Council may pick another day to observe it. (Code Civ. Proc., § 135; Gov. Code, § 6700, subd. (a).)

The official schedule lists five judicial holidays from December 2026 through February 2027:

Friday, December 25, 2026, Christmas Day.
Friday, January 1, 2027, New Year's Day.
Monday, January 18, 2027, Martin Luther King, Jr., Day.
Friday, February 12, 2027, Lincoln's Birthday.
Monday, February 15, 2027, Washington's Birthday.

The motion schedule in section 1005(b)

Moving papers: 16 court days before the hearing

Unless a court order or a specific statute sets a different time, moving and supporting papers must be served and filed at least 16 court days before the hearing. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1005, subd. (b).) The same subdivision lengthens the notice period by service method:

Mail within California: five calendar days.
Mail to or from another state: 10 calendar days.
Mail to the Secretary of State's address confidentiality program: 12 calendar days.
Mail to or from an address outside the United States: 20 calendar days.
Fax, express mail, or another overnight delivery method: two calendar days.

Section 1013 does not apply to a notice of motion, an opposition, or a reply governed by section 1005, so its two-court-day rule for overnight delivery does not carry over. Electronic service falls under section 1010.6, which extends any period of notice set by statute or rule of court by two court days, with the exceptions listed below. Those two court days are added to the 16. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1010.6, subd. (a)(3)(B), (C).) A 2026 amendment removes that extension on January 1, 2027, and sections 1005 and 437c will expressly exclude electronic service from their added notice. (Stats. 2026, ch. 263.) Section 1005 itself lists only mail, fax, express mail, and overnight delivery, and the Court of Appeal applied section 1010.6 to the summary judgment notice period. (Cole v. Superior Court (2022) 87 Cal.App.5th 84, 87-88.) For demurrers, rule 3.1320(c) requires a hearing date that complies with section 1005 and, when service is electronic, with section 1010.6.

Opposition and reply: nine and five court days

Opposition papers must be filed and served at least nine court days before the hearing, and reply papers at least five court days before it. Each must be served by a method reasonably calculated to reach the other side by the close of the next business day after filing. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1005, subds. (b), (c).) Both dates are measured from the hearing, so the way the motion was served does not move them. The court may shorten any of these periods.

Some motions have their own schedule. A summary judgment motion needs 81 days of notice, with the opposition due 20 days and the reply 11 days before the hearing. (Code Civ. Proc., § 437c, subds. (a)(2), (b)(2), (b)(4).)

Extra time when a paper is served by mail or electronically

Section 1013: mail, overnight delivery, and fax

When a deadline runs from service of a paper, section 1013 extends it by the method of service, subject to the limits listed below:

Personal delivery: nothing is added.
Mail: five, 10, 12, or 20 calendar days, on the same scale as the section 1005 list above.
Express Mail or another overnight delivery method: two court days.
Fax: two court days, and only when the parties agree to fax service and confirm it in writing.

(Code Civ. Proc., § 1013, subds. (a), (c), (e).)

Section 1010.6: electronic service

Section 1010.6 extends a period that runs from service by two court days when the paper is served electronically, subject to the limits listed below. That extension ends on January 1, 2027. A paper served electronically at any hour of a court day is treated as served that day, and one served on a weekend or holiday is treated as served on the next court day. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1010.6, subd. (a)(3), (4).)

What the extensions do not reach

Sections 1013 and 1010.6 share three limits, found in the subdivisions cited above.

Neither extends the time to file a notice of intention to move for a new trial, a notice of intention to move to vacate a judgment under section 663a, or a notice of appeal.
Both give way to a specific exception in another statute or rule of court.
Each covers a period of notice, or a time to act or respond that runs from service of a paper.

Worked examples with real dates

Example 1: a motion set for hearing on Tuesday, January 19, 2027

A motion governed by section 1005 is set for Tuesday, January 19, 2027. Count backward and leave out the hearing day.

Monday, January 18 is Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, so the first court day back is Friday, January 15.
Court days 1 through 5 are January 15, 14, 13, 12, and 11. The reply is due Monday, January 11, 2027.
Court days 6 through 9 are January 8, 7, 6, and 5. The opposition is due Tuesday, January 5, 2027.
Court day 10 is Monday, January 4. New Year's Day, Friday, January 1, is skipped.
Court days 11 through 14 are December 31, 30, 29, and 28. Christmas Day, Friday, December 25, is skipped.
Court days 15 and 16 are Thursday, December 24 and Wednesday, December 23, 2026.

Moving papers delivered personally must be served and filed by Wednesday, December 23, 2026. Service by mail within California takes five more calendar days, counted back to Friday, December 18, 2026. Under section 1010.6, electronic service takes two more court days, counted back to Monday, December 21, 2026.

Example 2: interrogatory responses after service on Monday, December 14, 2026

A response to interrogatories is due within 30 days after service, and section 1013 applies to discovery. (Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2016.050, 2030.260, subd. (a).) Suppose the interrogatories are served on Monday, December 14, 2026.

Leave out December 14. Seventeen days remain in December, and 13 more reach Wednesday, January 13, 2027, which is day 30.
Personal delivery: the response is due Wednesday, January 13, 2027.
Mail within California: five more calendar days land on Monday, January 18, a judicial holiday, so the response is due Tuesday, January 19, 2027.
Electronic service: two more court days are Thursday, January 14 and Friday, January 15, so the response is due Friday, January 15, 2027.

Our discovery toolkit explains the response rules.

Example 3: the earliest hearing date for papers served on Monday, February 1, 2027

Counting forward answers a different question: how soon can a motion be heard? Papers are personally served and filed on Monday, February 1, 2027.

Court days 1 through 8 run from Tuesday, February 2 through Thursday, February 11.
Friday, February 12 (Lincoln's Birthday) and Monday, February 15 (Washington's Birthday) do not count, and neither does the weekend between them.
Court days 9 through 12 are February 16 through 19, and court days 13 through 16 are February 22 through 25.

The earliest hearing date with full notice is Thursday, February 25, 2027. Whether the department has that date open is a separate matter.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an official court date calculator for California courts?

Yes, at least one. The Los Angeles Superior Court offers a Court Date Calculator that counts court days or calendar days from a date you enter. It has no input for the method of service. Kolmogorov Law does not offer a calculator. This guide explains the rules behind the count.

What is the difference between court days and calendar days?

Calendar days are every day on the calendar. Court days leave out Saturdays, Sundays, and judicial holidays. Five calendar days after a Friday is the following Wednesday. Five court days after the same Friday is the following Friday, or later if a holiday falls in that week. The statute or rule that sets the deadline states which unit to use.

What date is 16 court days from today?

It depends on the weekday and on the holidays in between. With no holiday in the span, the sixteenth court day falls 22 calendar days after a Monday through Thursday start, and 24 days after a Friday start. Each weekday holiday in the span moves the answer one court day later. The Los Angeles Superior Court tool counts court days from a start date you enter.

Does service by mail or electronic service add time to a deadline?

Usually, when the deadline runs from service of a paper. Mail between California addresses adds five calendar days, and electronic service adds two court days. The electronic service extension ends on January 1, 2027. Three filings get no extension: a notice of intention to move for a new trial, a notice of intention to move to vacate a judgment, and a notice of appeal. For motion notice, section 1005's own list replaces section 1013.

Is there a discovery deadline calculator for California?

A court date tool counts days but does not know the discovery rules. Interrogatory responses are due 30 days after service, plus any service extension. Notice of a motion to compel further responses must be given within 45 days of service of the verified response, plus any service extension, unless the parties agree in writing to a later date. (Code Civ. Proc., §§ 2016.050, 2030.300, subd. (c).) Our motion to compel guide covers that motion.

When a deadline needs a lawyer's review

Counting is the mechanical part. A local rule, an order shortening time, or a statute with its own schedule can change the answer. Our civil litigation deadlines guide lists the common deadlines by code section, and our statute of limitations page covers filing deadlines for contract claims. If your business has just been served, start with our guide to the first 30 days after service, and see what a missed response date can cost on our default judgment page.

Kolmogorov Law, P.C. represents businesses in California civil litigation. Call (909) 235-6116 or contact us online. Our office is in Irvine, California.

This page is general information and not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Time computation can vary by statute, rule, or court order, so check the governing text in your own case.