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News Release

by | Apr 27, 2022 | Uncategorized

News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 14, 2022

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: Superior Court of Alameda County announces reopening of courtrooms to the public and expansion of clerk’s office hours.

The Superior Court of Alameda County (Court) announced today that, effective April 25, 2022, it will begin reopening courtrooms to the public. For the duration of the COVID pandemic, the public has been unable to observe court proceedings in person, although access has been available through live audio streaming. While the live streaming option will remain, the public also will now be able to be physically present in the courtroom for proceedings that are open to the public generally.

The process of reopening courtrooms will occur on a rolling basis, driven by resource availability. The Court will maintain an up-to-date list of which courtrooms are open to the public on its dedicated COVID-19 web page. Please note that courtrooms will only be open during times when court is in session. In some courthouses, lists of the daily proceedings are printed and posted, and litigants, attorneys, and members of the public may also check the appropriate case management system online to determine the date, time, and location of hearings:

  • Odyssey (Criminal) TCMS (Traffic)
  • eCourt (Civil/Small Claims)
  • Domain Web (Family/Probate)

The Court continues to require face coverings in all courthouses at all times under General Directive 2022-03A. And while the Court does not currently have any social distancing mandate, it requests that courtroom spectators attempt to maintain a safe distance from each other, including leaving empty seats if possible. Judicial officers will have the authority to limit the number of persons in a courtroom if necessary for the health and safety of the public or Court personnel.

In addition, beginning April 25, Civil, Family, Probate, Records, and Appeals clerk’s offices will once again open at 8:30 a.m. for in-person and telephone services, and will close at 2:00 p.m. Criminal clerk’s offices will continue to open at 8:30 a.m. and close at 3:00 p.m., while Traffic clerk’s offices will open at 8:00 a.m. and close at 3:00 p.m. Drop boxes will be available from when each office closes until 4:00 p.m. every day.

Civil e-filing will still be available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, along with Criminal and Juvenile e-filing. Fax filing also remains available for Family and Probate filings.

The Court’s Self-Help Center will remain closed for in-person service at this time, although assistance is still available by telephone and LiveChat. The Court is planning to resume in-person Self-Help services by appointment only within the coming weeks.

For additional information related to the Court’s COVID response, please see our dedicated COVID-19 page, and please follow @AlamedaSuperior on Twitter for immediate updates.

Superior Court of California
COUNTY OF ALAMEDA
News Release
Charles A. Smiley III, Presiding Judge Thomas Nixon, Assistant Presiding Judge
Chad Finke, Executive Officer
René C. Davidson Courthouse
1225 Fallon Street Oakland, California 94612
@Alameda Superior
www.alameda.courts.ca.gov

For more information about this news
release, please contact:
Executive Office
pcomments@alameda.courts.ca.gov
510-891-6012

Divorce

Family

Children

Tammy J. Mercado

Tammy J. Mercado has a passion for helping her clients achieve their desired results. She listens and she personally and promptly responds to your texts, emails and phone calls. She offers real solutions to your legal matters. Tammy will carefully evaluate the legal issues in your case, provide you with sound advice and offer you the pros and cons of each possible scenario so you can meet your legal objectives. She encourages clients to participate in their own matters. Tammy believes that client participation is key to a positive result and to keeping attorney fees as low as possible. You can be sure that she will offer you straightforward, sound and honest advice in a professional manner, with integrity and excellence.

Before opening her own law practice, Tammy worked for many high-volume law firms. This gave her extensive, diversified experience in hundreds of complex family law cases as well as civil matters. She is admitted to practice law before all courts in California and the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. She is also a member of the American Bar Association, the Contra Costa Bar Association, the Alameda County Bar Association and the Bar Association of San Francisco. Tammy is also a member of the Rotary Club of Danville.

Tammy is a graduate of John F. Kennedy School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Science in business management from the University of Phoenix. Tammy is also a licensed real estate broker, which comes in handy for valuing property in family law cases as well as real estate matters in the civil arena.

During her off time, Tammy is an avid sailor who crews and races on various boats in the San Francisco Bay. Tammy approaches each case as she would any yacht race: by assessing the other’s strengths, weaknesses, experience, equipment, history and reputation. She is a member of the American Sailing Association, and she is a certified Coast Guard Auxiliary member.

HONORS AND AWARDS
Tammy was selected to receive the prestigious “Business Person of the Year” Award in 2017 for the San Ramon Chamber of Commerce.

Tammy is currently serving as Danville Rotary President for 2017 through 2019.

Mary C. Whipple, CFLS

Mary C. Whipple opened her first law practice in the summer of 2008. She previously was an associate attorney at the Law Office of Cummins & Holmes, a full-service civil litigation law firm in San Ramon. The majority of her experience is in family law, which includes divorce, custody, support, prenuptial agreements and domestic-violence restraining orders. Certified by the California State Bar’s Board of Legal Specialization, she is a specialist in the area of family law. Mary has also represented clients in a variety of non-family-law cases, including juvenile dependency, probate, breach of contract and employment disputes, to name a few.

Mary also previously worked as a contract attorney for O’Melveny & Meyers in San Francisco while simultaneously volunteering at the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Volunteer Legal Services Program, representing defendants in unlawful detainer actions. The program acknowledged Mary with an Outstanding Volunteer in Public Service Award in 2006 for her efforts in providing access to justice.

A seventh-generation Californian, Mary is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago School of Law. She earned her Bachelor of Science in criminology at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Oregon. She is a member of the State Bar of California, the Alameda County Bar Association, and the Contra Costa County Bar Association.

In addition, Mary is active in her community as a member of the Ambassador’s Committee for the San Ramon Chamber of Commerce; a volunteer at the Contra Costa County and Alameda County Superior Courts, where she assists self-represented litigants in completing their divorces; and a member of Divorce Angel, where she provides information regarding family law matters to members of the community. Since 2007 she has been a volunteer judge for Alameda and Contra Costa County’s Annual High School Moot Court Competition. She is also a member of the Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary Club. She was awarded the San Ramon Chamber of Commerce 2012 Business Person of the Year; and a graduate of the 2012 class of Leadership San Ramon Valley.

CERTIFIED LEGAL SPECIALTIES
Certified Specialist in Family Law by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization