More than 500 laws were passed in 2025 impacting the courts. Many of these laws will support the judicial branch to meet the needs of court users with diverse backgrounds and interests. 

Immigration  
California law offers some of the strongest protections for immigrants in the country. This year, as California was at the heart of the federal administration’s immigration activities, the courts have worked to ensure that court proceedings remain fair and accessible to all court users.  

One law that supports this effort is SB 281, which requires the court to give a verbatim immigration advisement before a plea of guilty or no contest can be made. This means that the court must advise a defendant that if they are not a citizen, pleading guilty or no contest may result in immigration consequences like deportation. Pleading no contest means the defendant does not admit guilt but does concede the charge.   

AB 1261 requires the state to provide legal counsel to immigrant youth in federal or related state immigration proceedings. The law would define immigrant youth as unaccompanied undocumented minors. The state can contract with qualified nonprofit legal services organizations or an office of the public defender to provide this counsel.   

Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice  
In 2026, new laws will help counties and state departments further strengthen their child welfare services. AB 779 authorizes counties to establish a three-year pilot program. In this program, domestic violence consultants will offer guidance to county social workers on how to best support families potentially experiencing both domestic violence and child maltreatment. Counties will also be required to adopt a placement transition plan for foster youth (AB 896). This plan would be adopted before foster youth transition either between placement settings or from foster care to reunification. Additionally, the state’s Office of Child Abuse Prevention will develop a standardized curriculum for mandated reporters, available online by July 1, 2027 (SB 119).  

In court proceedings, new laws aim to enhance minors’ experience with the court. Incarcerated parents now must be given the opportunity to be physically present at dependency hearings related to their child. If physical presence is waived, they can participate through videoconference or teleconference (AB 651). Additionally, the Family Preparedness Act of 2025 expands the definition of “relative” in caregivers’ authorization affidavits, which allow a caregiver to make decisions for a child without establishing formal guardianship. The new definition will include any adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the fifth degree of kinship, such as stepparents.

With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), deepfake pornography, which is AI-generated media imitating real people, is a concerning new form of exploitation that AB 621 seeks to protect minors from. This law revises the existing cause of action, or the circumstances that give a person the right to seek a remedy in court, for deepfake pornography. This law adds a cause of action against a person who knows, or reasonably should know, that an individual depicted in deepfake pornography material was a minor.  

Mental Health  

California first implemented the Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment Act (CARE) in 2023. This program allows adults to petition a civil court to create a voluntary CARE agreement or a court-ordered CARE plan. CARE plans provide adults experiencing severe mental illness with services like behavioral health care or housing. Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, eligibility for the CARE Act will include individuals who have bipolar I disorder with psychotic features (SB 27).  

Read more here: California Courts Newsroom