A calendar call is a pre-trial meeting between a judge and attorneys to set a trial date and arrange preliminary details. It is an administrative meeting, but attorneys may strategize for an earlier or later trial date. Calendar calls are important in criminal trials to ensure the defendant’s right to a speedy trial. They are standard legal procedure for any judicial matter and vary in flexibility and consequences.
A calendar call is a pre-trial meeting that a judge holds with attorneys in a case to set a trial date, as well as arrange some preliminary details. Calendar calls are aspects of the common law system. The common law system originated in England and is used in various forms there and in the United States, Canada and Australia, among other countries. The calendar call is an administrative meeting that should be purely functional. However, some attorneys attempt to strategize in calendar call meetings, vying for an earlier or later trial date, depending on the perceived strength of their client’s case.
Filing a lawsuit sets in motion a lawsuit, but nothing will happen in a courtroom without certain administrative duties. Most of these occur, or at least start, at the calendar call. When a court receives legal documents and the initiation of a lawsuit, the first thing it usually does is assign the matter to a judge. That judge will then contact representatives of both the plaintiff and the defendant to schedule a calendar call in order to enter the matter into the judge’s record.
During the meeting, a test number is assigned and a test date is set. Attorneys can sometimes negotiate a trial date. Attorneys who have other cases or processes that may conflict usually have the preference in making scheduling requests.
Sometimes, attorneys will attempt to manipulate the trial date, requesting it earlier or later as a strategy. An attorney with a weak case may need more time to build his or her evidence, while an attorney who perceives the other side’s case as weak may want to move things along more quickly. Trial date manipulation is generally not allowed, but sometimes happens regardless.
Calendar calls are perhaps the most important in criminal trials. In the common law system, certain rights are afforded to criminal defendants and the accused, including, in most countries, the right to a speedy trial. The quick trial date calendar after an arrest ensures that criminal defendants are not held in custody or required to post bail for longer than a reasonable set time. The defendant’s rights are generally taken seriously and can be grounds for damages and judicial penalties if not adequately protected.
Calendar calls are standard legal procedure for nearly any judicial matter, whether it’s a full-fledged criminal trial or something as minor as a traffic hearing. Many minor issues are heard on the same day they are scheduled. In these cases, a judge typically holds a mass calendar call first thing in the morning, and everyone with a complaint or petition will, in turn, appear to be given a trial appointment.
How calendar calls are conducted and the flexibility that may exist in scheduling varies by court and even within courts per judge. All trials and hearings must be scheduled, but how this is scheduled is usually a matter of discretion. Likewise, there are always consequences for failing to meet the dates and requirements set forth in a calendar meeting, but the specifics of what those consequences are varies.
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