California Form CV 71 – Fill Out and Use This PDF

California Form CV-71 PDF Details

California Form CV-71 is the Civil Cover Sheet for the United States District Court, Central District of California. Attorneys and self-represented parties must file this form with every new civil complaint.

The form covers six key areas:

• Parties and attorneys: Full names of all plaintiffs and defendants, and the contact information for each party's attorney, or a note that the party is self-represented.
• Basis of jurisdiction: The legal ground for federal court authority over the case, such as a federal question, diversity of citizenship, or US government involvement.
• Nature of suit: A numeric code from the form's classification table that describes the type of legal claim and determines how the case is tracked and assigned.
• Cause of action: The specific US statute under which the claim arises, plus a one-sentence statement of the legal claim.
• Related cases: Any other cases pending in the same court that share parties, facts, or legal questions with the current filing.
• Venue: The California county where the action arose or where the defendants reside, confirming that the Central District is the proper venue.

Completing Form CV-71 accurately helps the court assign the case to the correct division and confirms the filing meets all procedural requirements from the start.