--- type: "Bill" title: "Courts: frivolous actions or tactics." description: "Existing law, until January 1, 2018, authorizes a trial court to order a party, the party's attorney, or both, to pay the reasonable expenses, including attorney's fees, incurred by another party as a result of bad-faith actions or tactics, as defined, that are frivolous or solely intended to cause unnecessary delay. Existing law requires a party filing a motion pursuant to those provisions to promptly transmit specified information to the California Research Bureau of the California State Library. Existing law requires the bureau to maintain a public record of transmitted information for at least 3 years, or until those provisions are repealed, as specified." jurisdiction: "us/states/ca" legislature: "California Legislature" session: "20172018" identifier: "AB 984" citation: "California AB 984 (20172018)" classification: ["bill"] subjects: ["Courts: frivolous actions or tactics."] status: "enacted" primary_sponsors: ["Calderon"] version_count: 7 action_count: 28 vote_count: 6 first_action: "2017-02-16" last_action: "2017-08-07" source: "openstates" source_identifier: "ocd-bill/2ec34755-d092-4b20-9590-278c9cb0eb20" source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984" source_hash: "6bc8295eefa133b40a61fd1c3efeef137da8122b1e10f5231d5fdd190e2c2de5" vintage: "2026-07-01" source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump" retrieved_at: "2026-07-06" confidence: "reported" tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"] --- # California AB 984 (20172018) — Courts: frivolous actions or tactics. Existing law, until January 1, 2018, authorizes a trial court to order a party, the party's attorney, or both, to pay the reasonable expenses, including attorney's fees, incurred by another party as a result of bad-faith actions or tactics, as defined, that are frivolous or solely intended to cause unnecessary delay. Existing law requires a party filing a motion pursuant to those provisions to promptly transmit specified information to the California Research Bureau of the California State Library. Existing law requires the bureau to maintain a public record of transmitted information for at least 3 years, or until those provisions are repealed, as specified. ## Version chain The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment. 1. **02/16/17 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98499INT) 2. **04/20/17 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98498AMD) 3. **06/19/17 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98497AMD) 4. **07/12/17 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98496AMD) 5. **08/07/17 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98494CHP) 6. **AB984** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984) 7. **07/21/17 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB984&version=20170AB98495ENR) ## Votes - AB 984 CALDERON Concurrence - Urgency Added — **70–0** (pass) · lower - Do pass. — **16–0** (pass) · lower - AB 984 CALDERON Assembly Third Reading — **73–1** (pass) · lower - 3rd Reading AB984 Calderon By Hertzberg Urgency Clause — **38–0** (pass) · upper - Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **10–0** (pass) · lower - Do pass — **6–0** (pass) · upper ## Sponsors - Calderon — primary (person) ## Timeline The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote. - **2017-02-16** Read first time. To print. `reading-1` - **2017-02-17** From printer. May be heard in committee March 19. - **2017-03-02** Referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee` - **2017-03-27** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee. - **2017-04-20** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on JUD. Read second time and amended. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1` - **2017-04-24** Re-referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee` - **2017-04-25** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (April 25). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage, referral-committee` - **2017-05-10** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (May 10). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage` - **2017-05-11** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2017-05-15** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 73. Noes 1. Page 1542.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1` - **2017-05-15** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1` - **2017-05-24** Referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee` - **2017-06-19** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on JUD. `amendment-passage, referral-committee, reading-2, reading-1, amendment-introduction` - **2017-06-28** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (June 27). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage` - **2017-06-29** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2017-07-12** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `amendment-passage, reading-3, reading-1` - **2017-07-13** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2017-07-13** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. pursuant to Joint Rule 10.5. `referral-committee` - **2017-07-17** From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8. `committee-passage, reading-2` - **2017-07-18** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2017-07-20** Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 38. Noes 0. Page 2120.). `reading-3, passage, reading-1` - **2017-07-20** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after July 22 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77. - **2017-07-20** Assembly Rule 77(a) suspended. - **2017-07-20** Assembly Rule 63 suspended. (Ayes 46. Noes 22. Page 2636.) - **2017-07-20** Urgency clause adopted. Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 70. Noes 0. Page 2638.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage` - **2017-07-31** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m. - **2017-08-07** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature` - **2017-08-07** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 169, Statutes of 2017. ## Source OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/2ec34755-d092-4b20-9590-278c9cb0eb20`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).