Q: Where can I find California appellate court opinions online?

The California Courts Web site lists recent California Supreme Court opinions at http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/supreme/recent.htm and recent state Court of Appeal opinions at http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/courtsofappeal/. For example, opinions from the Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District (San Jose) appear at http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/courtsofappeal/6thDistrict/. The opinions are posted to the Web site when they are issued by the courts, and they remain accessible on the opinions page for 120 days. Opinions are thereafter accessible on the Official Reports page or the slip opinions archive page. The most appropriate version of an opinion to rely on is the version on the Official Reports page, which has been edited and corrected in accord with rule 976 (e) of the California Rules of Court.

Supreme Court opinions and Court of Appeal opinions certified or ordered published are superseded by orders for rehearing, grants of review by the Supreme Court, and Supreme Court depublication orders for Court of Appeal opinions. An opinion that has been superseded is no longer considered published and, with limited exceptions, may not be cited or relied on by a court or party. (Cal. Rules of Court, rules 976 (d) and 977 (a).) Because opinions on this Web site are not primarily provided for purposes of legal research, other sources of legal information must be consulted to determine if an opinion is superseded and noncitable.

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