Loading…
Where court forms are filed: the courthouse for each case type (appeals, limited and unlimited civil cases at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, small claims and unlawful detainer by city, criminal, elder abuse, family law and domestic violence restraining orders at the Spinetta Family Law Center, the Domestic Violence window at the Pittsburg Superior Court or the Restraining Order window at the Richmond Superior Court, juvenile at the Walnut Creek Superior Court, probate, traffic) and the courthouse for each city and ZIP code.
California > First Appellate District > Contra Costa County > Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa
Where Court Forms are Filed Filing court forms or other papers” means giving the papers to a court clerk or electronically filing them. Electronic filing may be mandatory (for example, certain civil cases) or optional (for example, criminal and juvenile matters). Cases not subject to mandatory electronic filing may be given to the clerk by mail or in person. Information on electronic filing may be found on the Court’s E-Filing Services page. The form or other paper is considered "filed" only after the court clerk stamps it "Filed." Then, that paper becomes part of the record of the case. The papers are then called "file-stamped" or "file endorsed." Court forms need to be filed in the correct courthouse as decided by state laws and local court rules. Each courthouse has the authority to hear and decide cases of specific subject matter and venue. For example, in Contra Costa County, one courthouse hears family law cases, while another courthouse handles small claims cases for disputes that started in a city which that courthouse serves. Generally, the person who is starting the case must identify which courthouse can and will handle the dispute. For cases using paper filing, once the first papers are filed, the respondent or defendant must file all papers in the same courthouse. Appeals All appeals except Juvenile, Traffic, and Small Claims matters are filed at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse in Martinez. Appeals in Juvenile matters are filed in the Walnut Creek Superior Court. Traffic and Small Claims appeals are filed in the court where the matter was heard. Civil Cases (Limited and Unlimited) All civil cases are filed and heard in the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse in Martinez. Civil Cases (Small Claims and Unlawful Detainer) Small Claims and Unlawful Detainer cases are filed and heard in the court serving the city where the dispute started. Criminal Law A criminal case is an action brought by the government against a person who has broken penal law. The District Attorney files all criminal case documents in the court serving the city where the violation occurred. Criminal cases are separated into three main categories, felony, misdemeanors, and infractions. Criminal cases are processed and heard at all court locations. Elder Abuse Elder Abuse cases are filed in the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse in Martinez. Family Law (including Domestic Violence Restraining Orders and Adoptions) All family law cases, including Domestic Violence Restraining Orders and Adoptions are filed in the Spinetta Family Law Center in Martinez. However, if you have no existing court cases with the other party, have no children with the other party, and are not married to the other party… AND live in East County (Antioch, Bay Point, Bethel Island, Brentwood, Byron, Discovery Bay, Knightsen, Oakley and Pittsburg, you may obtain assistance and must submit your documents at the Domestic Violence window at the Pittsburg Superior Court. AND live in West County (El Cerrito, Richmond, San Pablo, Pinole, Hercules, Kensington, El Sobrante, North Richmond, Rodeo, Crockett and Port Costa), you may obtain assistance and must submit your documents at the Restraining Order window at the Richmond Superior Court. Juvenile Law All Juvenile case documents are filed only at the Walnut Creek Superior Court. Juvenile cases are those involving minors under the age of 18 years. Juvenile cases involving minors are separated into two main categories: Juvenile Delinquency for minors who have broken penal law and Juvenile Dependency for minors who are not in the care of their parents or guardians. Both types of Juvenile cases are heard at the Walnut Creek Superior Court. Probate, Guardianship and Conservatorships All Probate, Guardianship and Conservatorship documents are filed and heard in the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse in Martinez. Traffic Traffic cases involve citations issued for infraction violations. A reminder notice will be mailed out indicating which courthouse will be handling the case. Traffic cases are assigned according to where the citation was issued and will be heard at the Walnut Creek Superior Court, the Richmond Superior Court, and the Pittsburg Superior Court. Criminal A criminal case is an action brought by the government against a person who has broken penal law. Criminal cases are separated into three main categories, felony, misdemeanors, and infractions. All criminal cases are processed and heard at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, or at the A. F. Bray Courthouse. Juvenile Juvenile cases are those involving minors under the age of 18 years. These are separated into two main categories: Juvenile Delinquency for minors who have broken penal law and Juvenile Dependency for minors who have been removed from the home and/or care of their parents or guardians. Juvenile Delinquency cases are heard at the Walnut Creek Superior Court. Juvenile Dependency cases are heard at the Walnut Creek Superior Court. Traffic Traffic cases are those in which citations have been issued for a violation of traffic laws. Traffic cases are heard and processed at the Walnut Creek Superior Court location. Where to file by City, ZIP code City ZIP Code(s) Your courthouse is Alamo 94507 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Antioch 94509, 94531 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Bay Point 94565 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Bethel Island 94511 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Blackhawk 94506 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Brentwood 94513 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Byron 94514 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Canyon 94516 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Clayton 94517 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Concord 94518 - 94522, 94524, 94527, 94529 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Crockett 94525 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Danville 94506, 94526 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Diablo 94528 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Discovery Bay 94505, 94514 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg El Cerrito 94530 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond El Sobrante 94803, 94820 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Hercules 94547 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Hilltop Mall 94806 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Kensington 94707 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Knightsen 94548 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Lafayette 94549 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Martinez 94553 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Moraga 94556, 94570, 94575 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez North Richmond 94801 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Oakley 94561 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Orinda 94563 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Pacheco 94553 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Pinole 94564 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Pittsburg 94565 Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, Pittsburg Pleasant Hill 94523 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Point Richmond 94801 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Port Costa 94569 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Richmond 94530, 94801 - 94808, 94820, 94850 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond Rodeo 94547, 94572 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond San Pablo 94806 George D. Carroll Courthouse, Richmond San Ramon 94582, 94583 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez Walnut Creek 94595 - 94598 Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez
Where Court Forms are Filed Filing court forms or other papers” means giving the papers to a court clerk or electronically filing them. Electronic filing may be mandatory (for example, certain civil cases) or optional (for example, criminal and juvenile matters). Cases not subject to mandatory electronic filing may be given to the clerk by mail or in person. Information on electronic filing may be
Reviewer note: Composed 2026-10-08 (California T4 Contra Costa build 2026-10-08) from BenchPath custody ca/t4/ca-contra-costa/pages/forms-filing__where-file.html (the page as fetched 2026-10-08; 606853 bytes, sha256 9db237327f7a32eeb1843e526cde28e2433399c2726f148c74c03c6ccedaa7b2) with html-compose.py (the Orange composer, with Contra Costa's area): the article's content sections (section.jcc-section), news bodies (div.jcc-news-full) and title banners (div.jcc-hero, which on this site can carry a lead paragraph; the first banner's heading, the page title, is chrome) - the site header, menus, breadcrumb and footer lie outside them; each block starts a line and each table cell is set on its own line; chrome removed: 1 item; proof (the multiset of non-space characters equals the containers' text less chrome and scripts) passes. Review note: Carded as printed: the page gives criminal and traffic locations twice (criminal cases "at all court locations" and "at the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, or at the A. F. Bray Courthouse"; traffic cases at Walnut Creek, Richmond and Pittsburg, and "at the Walnut Creek Superior Court location").
6 verbatim requirements on divisional requirements in GIUSEPPINA MIRANDA's division.
4 verbatim requirements on divisional requirements in HILARY CREARY's division.
2 verbatim requirements on divisional requirements in NATASHA DEPRIMO's division.