U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
Overview
What This Court Is
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California is one of four federal judicial districts in California and one of 94 federal judicial districts nationwide. It is a federal trial-level court, not an appellate court, and its headquarters courthouse is the Phillip Burton Federal Building and United States Courthouse in San Francisco.
Jurisdiction
The district covers 15 counties spanning the San Francisco Bay Area and the North Coast, from Monterey County in the south to the Oregon border in the north. It is organized into divisions tied to four courthouse locations.
- San Francisco Division (headquarters) — Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Sonoma counties
- Oakland Division — Alameda and Contra Costa counties
- San Jose Division — Monterey, San Benito, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz counties
- Eureka-McKinleyville courthouse — serves the North Coast counties within the San Francisco Division
What the court hears
As a federal trial court, the district hears civil and criminal matters arising under federal law, along with other federal-court business such as naturalization proceedings. Its docket is shaped by the region's economy, with substantial volume in:
- Patent and other intellectual property litigation
- Antitrust cases
- Securities litigation
- Technology-sector and complex commercial disputes
- Civil liberties and civil rights cases
- Multidistrict litigation (MDL) matters
Cases are filed and tried, or otherwise resolved, here first. Appeals from the court's decisions go to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and review there is confined to the trial record, with no new evidence taken and no retrying of facts.
Practicing before the court
An attorney must be an active member in good standing of the State Bar of California and must separately apply for admission to the court's own bar; membership in the state bar alone does not confer the right to appear. Admission is typically completed by e-filing an application in the court's CM/ECF system with a certificate of good standing dated within the prior year, along with the associated fee. Attorneys who are not otherwise admitted may also appear pro hac vice for a specific case, subject to the court's rules.
Attorneys
Standing Before This Court
Admission to practice before a federal court is a formal standing, granted through bar membership and application to the court's clerk, and maintained rather than earned once and set aside. It is distinct from the record of matters actually litigated here, which is addressed elsewhere. The attorneys listed below hold that standing in the Northern District of California and are authorized to represent clients in matters filed before it, from first appearance through resolution, without interruption.
Matters
Experience Before This Court
The matters below reflect cases our attorneys have carried before this court, from first filing through resolution. They describe how we've worked in this courtroom, not what a future matter here will bring. Each case turned on its own facts, and this record is offered as history, not prediction.
Past results do not guarantee, warrant, or predict a similar outcome in any future matter. Every engagement is unique and must be evaluated on its own facts and circumstances.
One team, start to finish.
Ready for What This Court Demands
Matters in this district often carry heavy technical records and substantial discovery stakes, reflecting the industries it serves. We bring that same discipline to eDiscovery work here. The attorney who opens a matter in this court stays with it through to resolution. If your matter belongs here, we welcome the conversation.