In Community Redevelopment Agency v. Matkin (1990) 220 Cal.App.3d 1087, the court concluded that the statute's intentions are carried out "where final offers and final demands are filed at least 30 (now 20) days prior to the actual trial, regardless of whether offers and demands were timely filed in connection with previously scheduled trial dates." (Matkin, supra, 220 Cal.App.3d at p. 1097.) Because the cutoff period was presumably selected by the Legislature as the point in time when the parties could avoid the "'needless incurrence of litigation preparation expenses,'" the statute's goal is achieved "so long as the offers and demands are filed 20 days before the actual trial date." (220 Cal.App.3d at p. 1097.)