General information
Court rules govern procedures for the conduct of business in the courts. These rules include both civil and criminal procedure, evidence, professional regulations, and other topics. They often concern such matters as time limits, pleadings allowed, formatting, and procedure.
Each court has a set of rules written specifically for or by that court. It is important to locate the correct set(s) of rules that apply to a specific situation and a specific court. State Court rules and relevant local court rules that supplement them must be followed.
- Court Rules in Civil Cases video from the King County Law Library
- Rules of Court from the State Law Library
See the Classification System for Court Rules from the State Court for help understanding the letter codes that are used to differentiate among the different types of rules.
Local, state, and federal court rules are available in print at the law library.
Rules for Washington state, county, and municipal courts
Washington State Courts
These rules apply to the state courts. State courts include the Supreme Court, the Courts of Appeals, the Superior Courts, and Courts of Limited Jurisdiction (District Courts and Municipal Courts). The rules cover a number of topics including evidence, court procedures, arbitration, the conduct of judges and attorneys, and more. There are specific rules for Superior Court and for the Courts of Limited Jurisdiction.
Clark County Superior Court
Local rules are created by the judges of the court and are a supplement to the State Court Rules. They provide information and requirements that are in addition to State Court Rules. These rules apply to Superior Court. They are numbered to correspond to the State Court Rules, so if there are numbers skipped it means there are no local rules on that topic.
Clark County District Court
Local rules are created by the judges of the court and are a supplement to the State Court Rules. They provide information and requirements that are in addition to State Court Rules. These rules apply to District Court. They are numbered to correspond to the State Court Rules, so if there are numbers skipped it means there are no local rules on that topic.
Battle Ground Municipal Court
These local rules are a supplement to the State Court Rules. They provide additional information and requirements that are specific to the Battle Ground Municipal Court, in addition to State Court Rules.
Camas Washougal Municipal Court
These local rules are a supplement to the State Court Rules. They provide additional information and requirements that are specific to the Camas Washougal Municipal Court, in addition to State Court Rules.
Rules for some federal courts
United States Federal Courts
These rules apply to the federal courts. Federal courts include the US Supreme Court, the Federal Circuit Courts, the Federal District Courts, and specialty courts such as Bankruptcy Courts.
United States District Court - Western District of Washington
Western District of Washington Local Rules are in addition to the Federal Rules. They are created by the judges and provide additional information and requirements that are specific to the district.
United States Bankruptcy Court - Western District of Washington
Local Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure are in addition to the Federal Rules. They are created by the judges and provide additional information and requirements that are specific to the district.