San Mateo County DVRO / TRO Online Hearing Memorandum — Dept. 23 (Hon. Jennifer M. Frost)

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MEMORANDUM OF COURTROOM PROCEDURE // PRO SE RESPONDENT BRIEFING
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ONLINE ZOOM HEARING • DEPT. 23

[NOTICE]: Procedural information for self-represented (in pro per) respondent in San Mateo County Superior Court. Confirm continuance dates with retained counsel tonight.

[San Mateo DVRO Portal →]

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA • COUNTY OF SAN MATEO 3 MINOR CHILDREN SEPARATE DISSOLUTION PENDING

INITIAL DVRO / TRO ONLINE HEARING GUIDE & OFFICIAL FORMS

Typed procedural manual for your remote Zoom appearance before Hon. Jennifer M. Frost (Department 23, Courtroom 6A), incorporating continuance rules under California Family Code § 245, child custody protections under Family Code § 3044, official Judicial Council forms, and classical courtroom advocacy doctrine from Asher L. Cornelius's The Cross-Examination of Witnesses (1929) and Trial Tactics (1932).

// OFFICIAL COURTROOM & ONLINE ZOOM ASSIGNMENT //

HON. JENNIFER M. FROST — FAMILY LAW JUDGE (DEPARTMENT 23 / COURTROOM 6A)

I. JUDICIAL OFFICER & DEPARTMENT RECORD:

JUDICIAL OFFICER.: Jennifer M. Frost, Family Law Judge

DEPARTMENT / RM..: Department 23 • Courtroom 6A

COURTHOUSE.......: Southern Court, 400 County Center, Redwood City, CA 94063

TELEPHONE........: (650) 261-5123

DEPT. EMAIL......: Dept23@sanmateocourt.org (Send simultaneous courtesy copies here due to e-filing delays)

DVPA CALENDAR....: Held in person & via Zoom (Thursdays at 9:00 a.m.). Prior Remote Appearance approval (Form RA-010) is NOT required for the DVPA/TRO Calendar.

II. ONLINE ZOOM HEARING CREDENTIALS (DEPT. 23 / RM. 6A):

ZOOM MEETING ID: 160 998 7125 PASSWORD: 413466

DIAL-IN PHONE: +1 (669) 254-5252 (Use video with functioning camera)

[OPEN DEPT. 23 PAGE & CLICK "JOIN NOW" ↗]

Sign In Early: Log into Zoom at least 15 minutes before start time.
Full Legal Name: Rename your Zoom display name to your full first and last name.
Camera & Mute: Keep camera functioning and stay muted until your line is called.
No Recording: Recording or taking screenshots of the Zoom hearing is strictly PROHIBITED.

// HEARING READINESS CHECKLIST LEDGER //

Check off your preparation tasks in Section 3 as you get ready for tomorrow's Zoom hearing in Dept. 23.

0 / 10 Ready

// CALIFORNIA JUDICIAL COUNCIL & DEPT. 23 DOCKET //

Official Court Forms & Where to Find Them

All forms are available on the California Courts Self-Help Form Portal and San Mateo Superior Court DVRO Page. Remember to email courtesy copies of any filed forms to Dept23@sanmateocourt.org.

Form No. & Official Title	Purpose & Dept. 23 Procedure	Official California Courts Links
[DV-115] Request to Continue Hearing Category: Continuance / Postponement	Used to ask Judge Frost to reschedule the hearing date because your counsel cannot attend or you need time to respond under Family Code § 245. You may also make this request orally on Zoom.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗] [Direct PDF: dv115.pdf ↗]
[DV-115-INFO] How to Ask for a New Hearing Date Category: Continuance / Postponement	Official Judicial Council instruction sheet explaining how to complete Forms DV-115 and DV-116 and how temporary orders are extended.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗] [Direct PDF: dv115info.pdf ↗]
[DV-116] Order on Request to Continue Hearing Category: Continuance / Postponement	Formal court order signed by Judge Frost when granting a continuance. States the new hearing date and extends the Temporary Restraining Order until the end of the continued hearing.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗] [Direct PDF: dv116.pdf ↗]
[DV-120] Response to Request for DVRO Category: Respondent Answer	Your written answer contesting DV-100. Key Rule: Under N.M. v. W.K. (2024), if you have not yet filed DV-120, you are entitled to one continuance as a matter of right under Family Code § 245(a) before filing it. When e-filed, email a courtesy copy to Dept23@sanmateocourt.org.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗] [Direct PDF: dv120.pdf ↗]
[DV-120-INFO] How Can I Respond to a DVRO? Category: Respondent Answer	Official court information sheet for respondents explaining rights, deadlines, service rules, and hearing preparation.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗] [Full Response Guide ↗]
[DV-100] Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order Category: Petitioner's Filing	The petition filed by your wife containing her factual claims and requested orders. Have your copy in front of you during the Zoom hearing.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗]
[DV-109] Notice of Court Hearing Category: Hearing Notice	Lists your hearing date and time in Department 23 (Courtroom 6A).	[Court Self-Help Page ↗]
[DV-110] Temporary Restraining Order (CLETS-TRO) Category: Temporary Orders in Effect	Details the exact temporary stay-away, personal conduct, move-out, and child custody/visitation orders currently in force. Obey every checked box strictly.	[Court Self-Help Page ↗]
[FL-313-INFO] Child Custody Recommending Counseling Category: Custody & Mediation (FCS)	Explains Child Custody Recommending Counseling (CCRC) through San Mateo Family Court Services, including separate mediation sessions when a DVRO is pending.	[Direct PDF: fl313info.pdf ↗]
[DV-800 / DV-800-INFO] Firearm Relinquishment Receipt Category: Mandatory Firearm Compliance	Mandatory proof if you own or possess firearms (San Mateo Gun Orders Rules). Be ready to confirm on Zoom that you do not own or possess any firearms (or have filed DV-800).	[DV-800 Self-Help ↗] [Direct PDF: dv800.pdf ↗] [DV-800-INFO Guide ↗]
[FL-150] Income and Expense Declaration Category: Child / Spousal Support & Fees	Required before the merits hearing if child support, spousal support, or attorney's fees are requested in DV-100.	[FL-150 Self-Help Page ↗]
[RA-010] Notice of Remote Appearance Category: Future Trials / Short-Cause Hearings	Not required for tomorrow's DVPA/TRO Calendar in Dept. 23, which automatically allows Zoom. However, if Judge Frost sets a future Short-Cause Hearing or Trial, Dept. 23 requires in-person attendance unless RA-010 is timely filed and approved.	[Direct PDF: ra010.pdf ↗]

// SECTION III: CHRONOLOGICAL DOCKET PROCEDURE //

Step-by-Step: What Tomorrow's Online Zoom Hearing in Dept. 23 Will Be Like

Check off each item as you prepare tonight and appear via Zoom before Judge Jennifer M. Frost tomorrow morning.

STEP 1 // TONIGHT: PRE-HEARING PREPARATION & ZOOM SETUP

Get your attorney's available dates & divorce case number: Ask your counsel tonight for 3–5 specific dates (especially Thursday mornings, when Dept. 23 hears the 9:00 a.m. DVPA/TRO calendar) over the next 2 to 6 weeks when they are available, plus your pending divorce case number. Test Zoom video & rename your display profile: Per Judge Frost's Dept. 23 Remote Appearance Rules, you must have a functioning video camera and your Zoom display name must be your full first and last name. Email courtesy copies if filing DV-115 in advance: You may request your continuance orally on Zoom, or if you e-file Form DV-115 and Form DV-116, Dept. 23 rules require simultaneously emailing a courtesy copy to Dept23@sanmateocourt.org due to e-filing delays.

STEP 2 // 15 MINUTES BEFORE HEARING: SIGNING ON TO DEPT. 23 ZOOM (MEETING ID: 160 998 7125 / PASSCODE: 413466)

Log into Zoom at least 15 minutes early (by 8:45 a.m. for a 9:00 a.m. hearing): Open Judge Frost's Department 23 Page and click "CLICK TO JOIN NOW" (or join Meeting ID 160 998 7125, Passcode 413466). Keep your microphone muted until your case is called. Listen to the standard DVPA admonishments & do not use Zoom chat to message Petitioner: At the start of the San Mateo DVPA Calendar, standard admonishments are presented; you will be asked on the record to confirm you understood them. Never message your wife in Zoom chat—that violates the TRO. Also remember that recording or screenshotting the Zoom session is strictly prohibited. Unmute promptly for Calendar Roll Call: Judge Frost or the courtroom clerk in Room 6A will call through the calendar lines to see who is present on Zoom. Unmute, turn on video, and state in 15 seconds that you are the Respondent appearing in pro per today to request a continuance because your retained counsel is unavailable.

STEP 3 // WHEN YOUR CASE IS CALLED: CONTINUANCE, DIVORCE COORDINATION & INTERIM VISITATION

Request your continuance under Family Code § 245 & mention the divorce case: State your request under Family Code § 245(a)/(b), give your lawyer's available dates, and provide your pending dissolution case number so both cases can be coordinated. Ask for Family Court Services (FCS) mediation & interim child access: If Form DV-110 currently restricts parenting time with your three children, politely ask Judge Frost for a referral to San Mateo Family Court Services (Form FL-313-INFO) and ask whether the temporary order can allow peaceful third-party custody exchanges or parenting-app messages pending the continued date.

STEP 4 // THE TRIAL & CROSS-EXAMINATION: CORNELIUS'S CROSS-EXAMINATION OF WITNESSES (1929) & TRIAL TACTICS (1932)

TRIAL & CROSS-EXAMINATION DOCTRINE

Department 23 Trial & Exhibit Rules: Per Judge Frost's Standing Rules, if the court sets your case for a future Short-Cause Hearing or Trial, trials are held in person in Courtroom 6A (unless a timely Form RA-010 is approved), and Respondents must label exhibits with letters (Respondent's A, B, C) in 5 identical Bates-stamped tabbed binders delivered 5 court days before trial. Whether the evidentiary hearing occurs at a continued trial date with your counsel or proceeds immediately tomorrow on Zoom, California Courts follow a five-stage trial sequence governed by the classical advocacy rules set forth by Asher L. Cornelius in The Cross-Examination of Witnesses: Rules, Principles and Illustrations (1929)^[1] and his companion treatise Trial Tactics (1932).^[4]

1. Advance Preparation & The Alibi (1929)

In Part I ("Preparation in Advance of Trial" and "The Alibi"), Cornelius stresses that effective cross-examination is never improvised; it is built before trial by auditing every date, time, and place alleged in Form DV-100 against objective documentary records (timestamps, receipts, GPS logs, work records) that establish timeline impossibility.^[1]

2. The Perjured Witness & Contradictions (1929)

When confronting "the perjured witness" or fabricated claims in a frivolous petition, never ask open-ended "why" questions that let the witness repeat her direct narrative. Lock her into collateral details (exact dates, who was present) and impeach her strictly with her own prior contradictory statements in texts, emails, or divorce filings.^[2]

3. No "Ridicule and Sarcasm" (1929, p. 121)

In his chapters on Ridicule and Sarcasm (p. 121) and The Female Witness, Cornelius warns that using sarcasm, sneering, or hostility against a female witness immediately alienates the judge and generates sympathy for the witness.^[3] Unfailing courtesy and short, neutral questions are vital when appearing pro se.

4. Demeanor & Personal Characteristics (1932)

In Trial Tactics (1932), Cornelius demonstrates how the personal characteristics, composure, and visible courtroom conduct of the parties heavily influence the trier of fact's judgment.^[5] On Zoom, your calm, respectful bearing on camera is itself affirmative proof refuting claims that you are volatile or disturb the peace.

5. Unified Theory & Orderly Exhibits (1932)

Cornelius emphasizes in Trial Tactics (1932) that a litigant must never scatter defenses across petty grievances. Anchor your presentation in a single, coherent theory of the case—that the petition is a tactical filing in a pending dissolution—and present your lettered Dept. 23 exhibits (A, B, C) in a tight chronological sequence.^[4]

6. Protecting Children & Knowing When to Stop

Across both treatises, Cornelius cautions against over-trying a point or dragging minor children into courtroom hostility.^[1] Avoid technical objections that irritate the bench; once you establish a clear contradiction between Form DV-100 and an objective record, stop questioning immediately.

Trial Stage	What Happens in Dept. 23	Your Role & Cornelius's Rules (1929 & 1932)
1. Swearing In & Opening Posture	Clerk in Dept. 23 administers the oath under penalty of perjury.	Raise your right hand on camera and state your oath clearly. Per Cornelius's Trial Tactics (1932), first impressions and personal bearing before the bench set the lens through which all testimony is weighed.^{[4], [5]}
2. Petitioner's Direct	Your wife testifies first and bears the burden of proof ("preponderance of the evidence").	Stay muted and maintain a calm, neutral expression on video. Per Trial Tactics (1932), avoid interrupting with minor technical objections; silently log every discrepancy between her oral testimony and her written DV-100 declaration.^{[3], [5]}
3. Cross-Examination	Judge Frost or you may question the Petitioner on her testimony.	Apply Cornelius's rules on Contradictory Statements and The Perjured Witness (1929): ask only short, leading, single-fact questions where you already hold the impeaching text, email, or divorce pleading. Avoid all ridicule or sarcasm (p. 121); if she has not proved an element, waive cross-examination on that point.^{[2], [3]}
4. Respondent's Case-in-Chief	Your turn to testify and introduce Respondent's Exhibits (labeled `A, B, C` in Dept. 23).	Address only Judge Frost ("Your Honor"). Following Trial Tactics (1932), present a unified, chronological refutation of each item in Form DV-100 using objective alibi/timeline proof while keeping the stability of your three children at the center.^{[1], [4]}
5. Ruling & Orders	Judge Frost rules on the petition or sets continued orders on the record.	Listen respectfully without interrupting to preserve your credibility before Judge Frost in your companion dissolution case.^[5]

// CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE (17TH ED.) NOTES & BIBLIOGRAPHY //

Asher L. Cornelius, The Cross-Examination of Witnesses: Rules, Principles and Illustrations (Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1929), pt. 1, 18–19 ("Preparation in Advance of Trial," "The Alibi," and "Children"), https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Cross_examination_of_Witnesses/CUMOAAAAYAAJ?hl=en.
Cornelius, The Cross-Examination of Witnesses, pt. 1 ("The Perjured Witness" and "Contradictory Statements"); see also HathiTrust Digital Library Catalog Record (101874741).
Cornelius, The Cross-Examination of Witnesses, 121 ("Ridicule and Sarcasm" and "The Female Witness"), Google Books Catalog Entry.
Asher L. Cornelius, Trial Tactics (Albany, NY: Matthew Bender & Company, 1932), ix, 600 pp., Google Books Edition (7n8_AAAAIAAJ); noticed in "Book Notes and Notices," Michigan Law Review 30, no. 8 (1932): 1365.
Cornelius, Trial Tactics ( analyzing the effect of the litigants' personal characteristics and courtroom demeanor on the trier of fact's judgment); cited in Fleming James Jr., "The Qualities of the Reasonable Man in Negligence Cases," Missouri Law Review 16, no. 1 (1951): 3 n.8.

Bibliography Entries (Chicago Style): Cornelius, Asher L. The Cross-Examination of Witnesses: Rules, Principles and Illustrations. Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1929. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Cross_examination_of_Witnesses/CUMOAAAAYAAJ?hl=en. Cornelius, Asher L. Trial Tactics. Albany, NY: Matthew Bender & Company, 1932. https://books.google.com/books?id=7n8_AAAAIAAJ.

STEP 5 // BEFORE SIGNING OFF ZOOM & AFTER THE HEARING

Write down the exact continued date & ask how Form DV-116 will be distributed: Before disconnecting from Zoom, confirm the exact continued date and time with the clerk and notify your attorney immediately. Confirm Firearm Relinquishment compliance (Form DV-800): Confirm on the record that you do not own or possess any firearms (or have filed Form DV-800).