you find a clerical error, the best place to correct it is the superior court level. • Harmless error Courts will frequently write opinions
in terms of harmless versus prejudicial error. Harmless errors will not affect the outcome on an appeal; the result would have been the same even if the error had not occurred. Obviously, this makes sense. Errors will almost certainly occur during the course of a trial; if any error rendered the case reversible, then almost every case would be reversible. This result would not make for an efficient judicial system. Code of Civil Procedure section 475
addresses errors not affecting the parties’ substantial rights and mandates that the trial court must disregard “any error, improper ruling, instruction, or defect, in the pleadings or proceedings which, in
the opinion of said court, does not affect the substantial rights of the parties.” This section also provides that there is no pre- sumption an error is prejudicial, thus requiring an appellant to demonstrate how the error was prejudicial, or how the error affected the substantial rights of the parties, or how it would have changed the outcome of the case. • Prejudicial/reversible error The requirement that an error be
prejudicial to justify reversal of a judgment or order finds its source in the California Constitution, Article VI, section 13: “No judgment shall be set aside, or new trial granted, in any cause, on the ground of misdirection of the jury, or of the improp- er admission or rejection of evidence, or for any error as to any matter of pleading, or for any error as to any matter of
procedure, unless, after an examination of the entire cause, including the evidence, the court shall be of the opinion that the error complained of has resulted in a mis- carriage of justice.” (See also Code Civ. Proc., §§ 475, 353(b), and 354.) Since prejudice is not presumed, the
appellant bears the burden of affirmative- ly demonstrating prejudicial error. In arguing judicial error, the appellant should take a two-prong approach – the error exists and it is prejudicial. “In the face of the constitutional limitation there is no room for the presumption that prej- udice results from the fact of error alone. The fact of prejudice is just as essential as the fact of error.” (Santina v. General Petroleum Corp. (1940) 41 Cal.App.2d 74, 77.) “‘[A] ‘miscarriage of justice’ should be declared only when the court, ‘after an
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