The Supreme Court today denied review in Ayala v. Superior Court and Council for Education and Research on Toxics v. Superior Court, two cases on the court’s pandemic docket. The court also depublished the Court of Appeal’s opinion in Ayala.
Ayala concerned application of the Judicial Council’s COVID-19 emergency rule that established a statewide emergency bail schedule. But the Judicial Council repealed that rule last week.
The Council for Education case challenged on due process grounds the Los Angeles Superior Court’s refusal to allow civil matters (except for some emergency cases) to proceed by telephonic hearings.
Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye and Justice Ming Chin were recused in both cases, probably because they are Judicial Council members. (See here.) Ayala involved a rule adopted by the Judicial Council. The Council’s connection to the Council for Education case is a bit more tenuous, but the Judicial Council did direct superior courts to make use of technology, when possible, to conduct judicial proceedings and court operations remotely, including the use of video, audio, and telephone for remote appearances, reporting, and interpreting.