Los Angeles County Superior Court to reopen after closure caused by ransomware attack

The Superior Court of Los Angeles County will be closed on Monday as they continue to recover from a ransomware attack that happened last week. 

Court officials announced that they were targeted in the early morning hours of July 19, while most of the world's technology was severely impacted in the aftermath of a Crowdstrike issue. It is not believed that this played a factor in the attack, however.

Because of this, all 36 courthouse locations across LA County will be closed to start the week as work continues on the repair and reboot of network systems that were shut down shortly after the ransomware attack was detected. 

"The Court experienced an unprecedented cyber-attack on Friday which has resulted in the need to shut down nearly all network systems in order to contain the damage, protect the integrity and confidentiality of information and ensure future network stability and security," said Presiding Judge Samantha P. Jessner in a statement released on Sunday. "While the Court continues to move swiftly towards a restoration and recovery phase, many critical systems remain offline as of Sunday evening. One additional day will enable the Court's team of experts to focus exclusively on bringing our systems back online so that the Court can resume operations as expeditiously, smoothly and safely as possible."

The last 72 hours have seen outside consultants, vendors, other courts and law enforcement working with court staff to try and get networks back online by Monday morning, according to the court's press release. 

The systems impacted by the shutdown include the court's entire operation process, including external systems like the court's website and jury duty portal, and internal systems like the court's case management systems. 

Attempts to access the court's website on Sunday evening proved unsuccessful, with a message reading: "The page you are looking for cannot be displayed due to a website error."

Though they say that significant process has been made in recovery, some challenges still remain and are delaying the progress longer than what was initially expected. 

"The Court recognizes the significance of a court closure on the communities it serves and the mission it abides by, however, it is essential that judicial officers and court staff are able to work in an environment that is safe and secure and with the informaiton they need to meet the Court's mission at their disposal," the release said.

Late Monday, they announced that operations would be able to resume as usual on Tuesday. 

"As a result of the tireless work of court staff and security experts, the Court will reopen all 36 courthouses tomorrow, July 23. Court users should expect delays and potential impacts due to limits in functionality. Additional information regarding court operations and availability of services will be shared later this evening," said a post on X from the court.