Get rulebook rule

GET

api

rulebooks

{rulebook_id}

rules

{number}

curl 'https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/3.1113' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

import requests
from urllib.parse import quote

number = "3.1113"
resp = requests.get(
    f"https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/{quote(number, safe='')}",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"},
)
rule = resp.json()

const number = "3.1113";
const resp = await fetch(
  `https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/${encodeURIComponent(number)}`,
  { headers: { Authorization: "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" } },
);
const rule = await resp.json();

{
  "number": "3.1113",
  "slug": "3.1113",
  "citation": "Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1113",
  "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
  "heading": "Memorandum",
  "outline": [
    { "label": "Title Three", "heading": "Civil Rules" },
    { "label": "Division 11", "heading": "Law and Motion" },
    { "label": "Chapter 2", "heading": "Format of Motion Papers" }
  ],
  "legal_status": "in_force",
  "effective_from": "2017-01-01",
  "observed_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00",
  "removed": false,
  "requirement_count": 27,
  "extraction_status": "succeeded",
  "site_url": "https://www.courtrules.app/rules/california-rules-of-court/3.1113",
  "current": {
    "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
    "heading": "Memorandum",
    "blocks": [
      {
        "type": "item",
        "label": "(d)",
        "heading": "Length of memorandum",
        "children": [
          {
            "type": "paragraph",
            "text": "Except in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service."
          },
          {
            "type": "note",
            "role": "history",
            "blocks": [
              {
                "type": "paragraph",
                "text": "(Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2017; adopted as part of a longer subd (d); previously amended effective July 1, 1984, January 1, 1992, July 1, 1997, and January 1, 2004.)"
              }
            ]
          }
        ]
      },
      {
        "type": "note",
        "role": "comment",
        "title": "Advisory Committee Comment",
        "blocks": [
          { "type": "paragraph", "text": "See also rule 1.200 concerning the format of citations." }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "plain_text": "(d) Length of memorandum\nExcept in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service.",
    "source_url": "https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_1113",
    "captured_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00"
  }
}

Returns one rule: its number, citation, heading, place in the rulebook and status, and its official text both as structured blocks and as plain_text. Use it to open a rule from a citation, to show the official wording next to a requirement, or to check whether a stored copy of a rule is still current. The answer does not include the rule’s requirements. Read them with /extracted-rules using rulebook_id and rule_number; requirement_count tells you how many to expect.

string

required

Rulebook identifier from /rulebooks, such as california-rules-of-court.

string

required

The rule’s official number, exactly as the rulebook prints it and without the word Rule: 3.1113, 4:46-2, 21a. It must match exactly: 21a and 21A are different rules, and 3.111 does not find 3.1113. URL-encode numbers that hold spaces or slashes (1/2 is 1%2F2). Leading and trailing spaces are not allowed. At most 40 characters.

curl 'https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/3.1113' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

import requests
from urllib.parse import quote

number = "3.1113"
resp = requests.get(
    f"https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/{quote(number, safe='')}",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"},
)
rule = resp.json()

const number = "3.1113";
const resp = await fetch(
  `https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/${encodeURIComponent(number)}`,
  { headers: { Authorization: "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" } },
);
const rule = await resp.json();

The real response lists subdivisions (a) through (m) of Rule 3.1113. The example keeps (d), the page limits, and the notes printed with the rule.

{
  "number": "3.1113",
  "slug": "3.1113",
  "citation": "Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1113",
  "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
  "heading": "Memorandum",
  "outline": [
    { "label": "Title Three", "heading": "Civil Rules" },
    { "label": "Division 11", "heading": "Law and Motion" },
    { "label": "Chapter 2", "heading": "Format of Motion Papers" }
  ],
  "legal_status": "in_force",
  "effective_from": "2017-01-01",
  "observed_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00",
  "removed": false,
  "requirement_count": 27,
  "extraction_status": "succeeded",
  "site_url": "https://www.courtrules.app/rules/california-rules-of-court/3.1113",
  "current": {
    "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
    "heading": "Memorandum",
    "blocks": [
      {
        "type": "item",
        "label": "(d)",
        "heading": "Length of memorandum",
        "children": [
          {
            "type": "paragraph",
            "text": "Except in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service."
          },
          {
            "type": "note",
            "role": "history",
            "blocks": [
              {
                "type": "paragraph",
                "text": "(Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2017; adopted as part of a longer subd (d); previously amended effective July 1, 1984, January 1, 1992, July 1, 1997, and January 1, 2004.)"
              }
            ]
          }
        ]
      },
      {
        "type": "note",
        "role": "comment",
        "title": "Advisory Committee Comment",
        "blocks": [
          { "type": "paragraph", "text": "See also rule 1.200 concerning the format of citations." }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "plain_text": "(d) Length of memorandum\nExcept in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service.",
    "source_url": "https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_1113",
    "captured_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00"
  }
}

Response fields

The fields before current are the ones /rulebooks/{rulebook_id}/rules returns for each rule.

string

Official rule number, as printed

string

URL form of the number, as used in site_url

string

How to cite the rule

string

Identifier of this version of the rule. It changes when the rule’s heading, place in the rulebook, text, status or effective date changes. The requirements read from the rule carry the same id in rulebook_rule.revision_id.

string

The rule’s heading

array

Where the rule sits in the rulebook, from the top level down

string

in_force, repealed or reserved. Repealed and reserved rules usually carry only a history note.

string | null

Date the current text took effect, as the official source states it. null when it gives none.

string

When we first saw this version of the rule on the official source

boolean

true when the official source no longer lists the rule. The rule keeps the text it had when it was last listed and has no requirements.

integer

Requirements read from the current text. Check extraction_status before reading 0 as none.

string

succeeded, pending, failed or skipped; see List rulebook rules

string

The rule’s page on courtrules.app

object | null

The rule’s latest official text. For a removed rule, the text it had when it was last listed. null when no text is available.

Show Current

string

The version of the rule this text belongs to. Equals the rule’s revision_id.

string

The rule’s heading in this version

array

The official text as structured blocks, in document order. See the block types below.

string

The operative text as lines: every paragraph, item and table row in order, with item labels. History notes and committee comments are left out. Empty for a rule with no operative text.

string

The official page the text was read from

string

When we fetched that page for this version

Block types

Every block has a type. Blocks nest: an item can hold paragraphs, other items and notes, and a note holds paragraphs.

`type`	Fields	What it is
`paragraph`	`text`	A paragraph of rule text
`item`	`label`, `heading` (optional), `text` (optional), `children` (optional)	A labeled part: a subdivision such as `(d)` with its heading, or a numbered paragraph such as `(1)`
`table`	`rows`, each with `cells` (`text`, optional `header`, `colspan`, `rowspan`)	A table printed in the rule
`note`	`role` (`history`, `comment` or `editor`), `title` (optional), `blocks`	Text printed with the rule that is not part of it: amendment history, committee comments

Notes and plain text

Notes are shown in blocks and left out of plain_text, out of search, and out of the requirements. A history note such as “Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2017” tells you when a part changed; it is not an instruction to a filer.

Errors

400: Invalid parameters

Returned when rulebook_id cannot be an identifier, or when number could not be any stored number: a space at either end, two spaces in a row, a control character, or more than 40 characters.

400

{
  "error": "Invalid request",
  "details": [
    {
      "path": "number",
      "message": "A rule number cannot start or end with a space or hold two spaces in a row"
    }
  ],
  "docs_url": "https://docs.courtrules.app/api-reference/get-rulebook-rule"
}

404: Rulebook or rule not found

Returned when no rulebook has this identifier, or the rulebook has no rule with exactly this number.

404

{
  "error": "Rule '9.999' not found in the California Rules of Court.",
  "suggestion": "Rule numbers match exactly as the rulebook prints them, without the word Rule. Find a rule with GET /api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules?q=<words>.",
  "docs_url": "https://docs.courtrules.app/api-reference/get-rulebook-rule"
}

One rule counts as one row against your daily row limit, however long its text.

curl 'https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/3.1113' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

import requests
from urllib.parse import quote

number = "3.1113"
resp = requests.get(
    f"https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/{quote(number, safe='')}",
    headers={"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"},
)
rule = resp.json()

const number = "3.1113";
const resp = await fetch(
  `https://api.courtrules.app/api/v1/rulebooks/california-rules-of-court/rules/${encodeURIComponent(number)}`,
  { headers: { Authorization: "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" } },
);
const rule = await resp.json();

{
  "number": "3.1113",
  "slug": "3.1113",
  "citation": "Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.1113",
  "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
  "heading": "Memorandum",
  "outline": [
    { "label": "Title Three", "heading": "Civil Rules" },
    { "label": "Division 11", "heading": "Law and Motion" },
    { "label": "Chapter 2", "heading": "Format of Motion Papers" }
  ],
  "legal_status": "in_force",
  "effective_from": "2017-01-01",
  "observed_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00",
  "removed": false,
  "requirement_count": 27,
  "extraction_status": "succeeded",
  "site_url": "https://www.courtrules.app/rules/california-rules-of-court/3.1113",
  "current": {
    "revision_id": "50dd0291-ae07-48d0-b490-23555244dcf1",
    "heading": "Memorandum",
    "blocks": [
      {
        "type": "item",
        "label": "(d)",
        "heading": "Length of memorandum",
        "children": [
          {
            "type": "paragraph",
            "text": "Except in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service."
          },
          {
            "type": "note",
            "role": "history",
            "blocks": [
              {
                "type": "paragraph",
                "text": "(Subd (d) amended effective January 1, 2017; adopted as part of a longer subd (d); previously amended effective July 1, 1984, January 1, 1992, July 1, 1997, and January 1, 2004.)"
              }
            ]
          }
        ]
      },
      {
        "type": "note",
        "role": "comment",
        "title": "Advisory Committee Comment",
        "blocks": [
          { "type": "paragraph", "text": "See also rule 1.200 concerning the format of citations." }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "plain_text": "(d) Length of memorandum\nExcept in a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 15 pages. In a summary judgment or summary adjudication motion, no opening or responding memorandum may exceed 20 pages. No reply or closing memorandum may exceed 10 pages. The page limit does not include the caption page, the notice of motion and motion, exhibits, declarations, attachments, the table of contents, the table of authorities, or the proof of service.",
    "source_url": "https://courts.ca.gov/cms/rules/index/three/rule3_1113",
    "captured_at": "2026-10-19T04:34:37.532+00:00"
  }
}

Overview

Endpoints

Policies

Response fields

Block types

Notes and plain text

Errors

400: Invalid parameters

404: Rulebook or rule not found

​Response fields

​Block types

​Notes and plain text

​Errors

​400: Invalid parameters

​404: Rulebook or rule not found

Response fields

Block types

Notes and plain text

Errors

400: Invalid parameters

404: Rulebook or rule not found