What is the test for habeas corpus procedures in civil matters?

Habeas corpus procedures are ordinarily preferred, in the interests of judicial economy, " ... "[if] the record on appeal sheds no light on why counsel acted or failed to act in the manner challenged[,] ... unless counsel was asked for an explanation and failed to provide one, or unless there simply could be no satisfactory explanation." " ( People v. Mendoza Tello (1997) 15 Cal.4th 264, 266, 62 Cal.Rptr.2d 437, 933 P.2d 1134.) But this is not the usual habeas corpus situation because it does not involve the reasoning behind a tactical trial decision, and perhaps measuring the impact of that decision in the light of a full trial record.