Superior Court of Los Angeles County Decentralizes Probate Operations, Bringing Probate Services Closer to Communities
Beginning Nov. 16, 2026, the Court Will Expand Probate Services to Courthouse Locations Strategically Located Across Los Angeles County to Bring Probate Services Closer to Communities
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County today announced a major initiative to decentralize its probate operations to improve access to probate services across Los Angeles County, expanding probate courtrooms to three new courthouse locations and increasing the number of judicial officers hearing probate matters.
Previously, probate services were primarily concentrated at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse and in a long-cause department at the Metropolitan Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. Effective Nov. 16, and pursuant to General Order 2026-GEN-017-00, probate courtrooms will be distributed to the following courthouse and department locations:
| Judicial Officer | Reassigned From | Assigned To |
|---|---|---|
| Judge Ruben Garcia | Department 244, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 3, Alhambra Courthouse. |
| Judge Michael R. Powell | Department 240, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department W, Alhambra Courthouse. |
| Judge Deborah L. Christian | Department 418, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department X, Alhambra Courthouse. |
| Commissioner Kristen A. Williams | New Probate Department. | Department 330, Van Nuys (East) Courthouse. |
| Judge Lynn H. Scaduto | Department 610, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 400, Van Nuys (East) Courthouse. |
| Judge Daniel Juarez | Department 614, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 6, Compton Courthouse. |
| Judge Stephanie C. Santoro | Department 600, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 7, Compton Courthouse. |
| Judge Charles Clay III | Department 308, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 3, Compton Courthouse. |
| Judge Brenda Penny | No Change, Department 217, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 217, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. |
| Judge Gus T. May | No Change, Department 629, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 629, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. |
| Judge Jonathan Rosenbloom | No Change, Department 246, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 246, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. |
| Judge Jessica A. Uzcategui | No Change, Department 236, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 236, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. |
| Commissioner Mark S. Priver | No Change, Department 615B, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. | Department 615B, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. Commissioner Priver will also temporarily hear select cases from the Alhambra Courthouse in Department 615B at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse and will be relocated to the Alhambra Courthouse at a later date. |
| Judge David J. Cowan | Department 64, Metropolitan Courthouse, long-cause department. No filings. | Department 200, Beverly Hills Courthouse, long-cause department. No filings. |
The Court will maintain four probate courtrooms at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse. In addition, as part of this decentralization effort, the Norwalk Courthouse will no longer hear probate cases on a previous one-day-a-month schedule beginning in January 2027. The 2026 hearing dates remain.
“Our goal is to make the Court more accessible to the people we serve,” said Presiding Judge Sergio C. Tapia II. “By decentralizing the Court’s probate services from downtown Los Angeles into neighborhood courthouses across Los Angeles County, we are reducing travel time and making it easier for a significant number of court users to access critical probate services.”
Key Information for Court Users:
Court users with probate matters with the Court should note the following:
- Case assignment: Starting Nov. 16, new probate cases will be assigned to one of four judicial districts based on the qualifying provided address. Pursuant to General Order 2026-GEN-017-00, probate cases will be filed at the Alhambra, Compton, Stanley Mosk, and Van Nuys East Courthouses based on the petitioner’s address.
- Cases within the jurisdictional limits of the East, Northeast/North Central, and Southeast judicial districts will be assigned to the Alhambra Courthouse.
- Cases within the jurisdictional limits of the South, South Central, and Southwest judicial districts will be assigned to the Compton Courthouse.
- Cases within the jurisdictional limits of the Central and West judicial districts will be assigned to the Stanley Mosk Courthouse.
- Cases within the jurisdictional limits of the North, North Valley, and Northwest judicial districts will be assigned to the Van Nuys East Courthouse.
- Court users may refer to the Court’s Filing Court Locator to determine their proper filing location. A map of the Court’s judicial districts can be found here.
- Existing cases: If a judicial officer is moving to a different department, all cases assigned to that judicial officer will move with them to the new location. All matters currently calendared shall remain scheduled on the dates and times previously set at the judicial officer’s new assigned location. Counsel and parties are instructed to indicate the assigned judicial officer and department on the first page of all documents filed with the clerk to ensure proper departmental assignment, calendaring of hearings and document routing.
- Notifications: Litigants and attorneys of record whose cases are reassigned to a different courthouse with a future hearing date on calendar on or after Nov. 16, 2026, will be notified by U.S. mail. Court users without a future calendared hearing date are encouraged to visit the Court’s Case Access Portal to verify their assigned location.
- Filings:
- The Michael D. Antonovich Antelope Valley Courthouse will still accept probate filings. Hearings in these matters will be held at the Van Nuys (East) Courthouse and will be given a Van Nuys Courthouse case number.
- Represented litigants must continue to electronically file (efile) via this list of probate approved electronic filing service providers. Pursuant to General Order 2026-GEN-017-00, self-represented litigants may efile documents or file them in-person at the Probate Clerk’s Offices where their case is assigned or at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse. Effective Nov. 16, Probate Clerk’s Offices will be located at the Stanley Mosk, Antelope Valley, Compton, Alhambra and Van Nuys (East) Courthouses. Please note that efiling is mandatory for represented litigants and optional for self-represented litigants.
- Remote Appearances: Remote appearances for probate hearings remain available via LACourtConnect (LACC).
Resources for Court Users:
- Probate Call Center: For questions about the Court’s decentralization of probate services, please call 213-830-0800, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding court holidays.
- In-Person Assistance: For in-person assistance, court users may visit Clerk’s Offices at the Stanley Mosk, Antelope Valley, Compton, Alhambra and Van Nuys East Courthouses. Court users may also receive assistance at a local Self-Help center.
- Finding your case: If your case has been relocated, you can verify its new location by searching your case number using the Case Access Portal.
The Court’s efforts to decentralize probate operations are designed to improve the litigant experience by reducing overall travel time and bringing Court services closer to where Los Angeles County residents live. The project is aligned with the Court’s 2025–2028 Strategic Plan to improve the court user experience and to improve access to justice.
You can view the full notice here.
First Legal, your premier litigation support provider.
