LJuCR 3.2 Who May File Petition - Venue

      (c) Location for Court Proceedings for Dependency Actions Filed in King County; Filing of Documents and Pleadings and Designation of Case Assignment Area.
           (1) All proceedings of any nature shall be conducted in the case assignment area designated on the dependency petition unless the Court has otherwise ordered on its own motion or upon motion of any party to the action.
           (2) Standards for Case Assignment Area Designation, and Revisions Thereof.
                (A) Location Designated by Party Filing Action. Initial designations shall be made upon the filing of the petition alleging dependency. Case Assignment Area designations shall not be changed between the time of filing of a dependency petition and the entry of a disposition order except as necessary to correct a mistaken designation, to prevent undue hardship to a party or by the Court on its own motion as required for the just and efficient administration of justice.
                     (i) For petitions for dependency the case area designation shall be based on the DYCF office filing the petition. King County shall be divided into case assignment areas as follows:
                          (a) Seattle Case Assignment Area and Boundary.  All petitions from the King East, King West, Martin Luther King, and White Center DCFS Offices, Adoptions and Permanency Office and any non-DCYF filed petition, except the areas included in the Kent Case Assignment Area.
                          (b) Kent Assignment Area and Boundary.  All petitions from the King South DYCF office and all areas of King County using the following postal zip codes: 98001; 98002; 98003; 98010; 98022; 98023; 98025; 98030; 98031; 98032; 98038; 98042; 98047; 98051; 98092; 98198.
                    (ii) For cases regarding children Children in Need of Services and At Risk Youth, the case designation shall be based on where the custodial parent resides.
                    (iii) For cases regarding children known to be protected by the Indian Child Welfare Act, the case area designation shall be Seattle.
                    (iv) Change of Area Boundaries. The Presiding Judge may adjust the boundaries between areas when required for the efficient and fair administration of justice in King County.
                (B) Change of Case Assignment Area Designation. The Court may order that a juvenile's case assignment area designation change upon the establishment of dependency and the entry of a disposition order based on one of the following reasons: hardship to one of parties; transfer of the case within the supervising agency or to a new agency; a need for judicial continuity of control over the case; transfer is in the best interest of the child; correction of a mistaken designation or for such other reason deemed just and proper by the Court or when required for the just and efficient administration of justice. A case should not be transferred solely to accommodate an attorney.
                     (i) Method. A motion for change of case assignment area designation may be made by any party to the dependency or by the Court on its own motion. Such a motion shall only be made in writing and shall be titled Motion to Change Case Assignment Area and shall specify the factors for change of case assignment area. A proposed Order to Change Case Assignment Area shall be included with the working papers submitted for the Court. If the motion is agreed to by the parties, the motion shall so state and the proposed order shall include the signatures of the parties. The Order to Change Case Assignment Area shall be filed by the prevailing party. All cases shall proceed in the original case assignment area until the order is entered and filed. Proceedings in the assigned area shall not preclude the timely filing of a motion to transfer.
                (C) Improper Designation/Lack of Designation. The designation of the improper case assignment area shall not be a basis for dismissal of any action, but may be a basis for imposition of terms. The lack of designation of case assignment area at initial case filing may be a basis for imposition of terms and will result in assignment to a case assignment area at the Court's discretion.
                (D) Assignment or Transfer on Court's Motion. The Court on its own motion may assign or transfer cases to another case assignment area in the county whenever required for the just and efficient administration of justice in King County.
                (E) Venue not affected. This rule shall not affect whether venue is proper in any Superior Court facility in King County.
           (3) Where Pleadings and Documents Filed. Pursuant to LGR 30, all pleadings and documents for any dependency proceeding in King County must be electronically filed with the Clerk of the Superior Court using the Clerk’s e-filing system. Documents identified as exceptions to mandatory e-filing must be filed in paper form at the court facility in the case assignment area of the case.
                (A) Working copies for motions and hearings. Unless otherwise specified in these rules, all parties to a motion or hearing must submit a proposed order and working copies to the court pursuant to the procedures outlined on the dependency website: https://kingcounty.gov/courts/superior-court/dependency.aspx.
           (4) Inclusion of Case Assignment Area Code. All pleadings and documents shall contain after the cause number the case assignment designation code assigned by the Clerk for the case assignment area in which court proceedings are to be held. The Clerk may reject pleadings or documents that do not contain this case assignment area code.

[Adopted effective January 2, 1994; amended effective October 1, 1996; September 1, 2004; September 1, 2005; June 1, 2009; April 1, 2011; September 2, 2013; September 1, 2016; September 1, 2021; September 1, 2022.]