Carson is one city on the map and several on the court's books. Its five Census ZIP Code areas don't all route the same way, and two of them, 90810 and 90248, are shared with Long Beach, the City of Los Angeles, Gardena and unincorporated county land. The Los Angeles Superior Court decides the filing courthouse for evictions and small claims by ZIP Code and community name, so two Carson addresses a mile apart can belong to different buildings.
The service itself happens at the Carson address. What the paralegal has to get right is the courthouse on the summons and the hearing date the proof must beat. We take Carson requests from Sacramento, roughly 376 miles north, and log every attempt on the request.
How Carson's ZIP Codes route
We queried each Carson ZIP Code in the court's filing court locator in October 2026 and kept the rows labeled Carson, plus the campus row for 90747:
| Locator row | Evictions | Small claims | Family law and unlimited civil |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90745 Carson | Compton | Compton | Compton |
| 90746 Carson | Compton | Compton | Compton |
| 90747 CSU Dominguez Hills | Compton | Compton | Compton |
| 90248 Carson | Compton | Long Beach | Compton |
| 90810 Carson | Long Beach | Long Beach | Compton |
Across every row, probate and limited civil cases that aren't collections go downtown to the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, 111 North Hill Street, about 15 miles away, and limited collection cases go to Norwalk, about 11 miles away. Restraining orders follow family law to Compton.
The Compton Courthouse at 200 West Compton Boulevard is about 4.1 miles from Carson's Census center point. The Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse at 275 Magnolia Avenue in Long Beach is about 5.7 miles away.
Where the city's land sits
The Census Bureau's 2020 ZCTA to place file shows how Carson's land divides:
- 90745: about 44% of the city, and the whole ZIP Code area lies inside Carson.
- 90746: about 31% of the city, again almost entirely inside Carson, with a sliver of Compton.
- 90810: about 17% of the city. Carson holds about 49% of this ZIP Code area's land, Long Beach about 47% and the City of Los Angeles the rest.
- 90248: about 7% of the city. Here Carson has about 29% of the land, the City of Los Angeles about 33%, unincorporated West Rancho Dominguez about 24% and Gardena about 9%.
- 90747: a tiny area entirely inside Carson.
Small edges of Carson also touch 90220, 90221 and 90744. If an address in one of those carries Carson as the city, run it through the locator before filing.
90810: four rows, three answers
The 90810 search returns rows for Carson, Dominguez, Long Beach and Los Angeles. They read differently:
- Carson row: evictions and small claims in Long Beach, family law and unlimited civil in Compton.
- Dominguez row: every listed case type in Compton.
- Long Beach row: most case types in Long Beach, with small claims sent to the Bellflower Courthouse.
- Los Angeles row: unlimited civil and family law in Long Beach, evictions and small claims in Compton.
A property on the Carson side of 90810 and one across the Long Beach line can have the same mailing ZIP Code and different courthouses for the same kind of case. Use the city named on the deed, lease or tax bill, not just the mailing city, and check the summons against the row you picked.
90248: the Carson row splits small claims
In 90248, the Carson row sends evictions, family law and unlimited civil to Compton but small claims to Long Beach. The neighboring rows don't follow suit. Gardena's row sends small claims to Compton, family law to Torrance and unlimited civil to Inglewood or Torrance. The Los Angeles and Rosewood rows send small claims to Inglewood. So a 90248 small claim filed under the wrong community could land in one of three buildings.
Inside the Compton Courthouse
Most Carson filings end up at Compton. According to the court's directory, the civil clerk and the small claims counter share the 9th floor, with small claims in Room 902 and the civil line at (310) 761-8657. The family law clerk is also on the 9th floor, (213) 633-6363. The Family Law Facilitator is on the 2nd floor in Room 200-F. The building opens at 8:00 a.m., and the clerk's offices run 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on court days.
The Long Beach counter
For the 90810 Carson row and the 90248 small claims, the filing goes to the Long Beach courthouse, where the directory puts civil, small claims and unlawful detainer together in Room 1401 on the 1st floor, (562) 256-2315 or (562) 256-2316. Family law, when a Carson case is filed under a Long Beach row, is in Room 1201.
Carson evictions
Whichever courthouse issued the summons, the tenant is served at the Carson unit. After personal service the tenant has 10 court days to respond, according to the California Courts Self-Help Guide. Starting January 1, 2027, a court can order posting of an eviction summons under CCP § 415.45 only on a showing of reasonable diligence, and the statute treats three good-faith attempts on three different days at three different times as that showing. Unless the property is commercial, one of the attempts has to be at the tenant's home when that address is known. Our AB 747 guide explains the rest.
For a Carson unit, include:
- The tenant names on the summons and any occupants your attorney wants served.
- The space or unit number, and directions to it if the property has several buildings or a shared entrance.
- Gate codes or a manager's contact, if the server needs either to reach the door.
- The case number and courthouse, Compton or Long Beach, so the proof matches.
Papers to serve in Carson?
Carson small claims
A Carson plaintiff files a small claim at Compton, or at Long Beach for the Carson rows of 90810 and 90248. Either way, someone other than the plaintiff has to serve it. CCP § 116.340 sets the notice: at least 15 days before the hearing for a defendant living in Los Angeles County, at least 20 days for one living outside it. Our server completes form SC-104, and the proof is filed with whichever court set the hearing. A business defendant is served through its agent for service of process, so look the company up on bizfile Online before you send the claim out.
Unlimited civil and injury suits
Unlimited civil cases from every Carson row are filed at Compton under the locator. Chapter 2 of the court's Local Rules, effective July 1, 2026, lets many unlimited cases be filed in the Central District at Stanley Mosk instead, and it keeps an unlimited personal injury case in the district where the incident happened. A collision on a Carson street therefore points to Compton. The defendant, though, is served wherever they can be found, which may be far from Carson.
Each new civil filing needs form LACIV 109, the Statement of Location. Attorneys e-file civil cases in Los Angeles unless the court has granted an exemption, and self-represented parties may still file at the counter. When a complaint names both a driver and a vehicle owner, each one needs a separate set of papers and a separate proof.
West Carson is a separate place
Some addresses that sound like Carson aren't in the city. West Carson is an unincorporated census-designated place governed by the County of Los Angeles. The Census file puts about 74% of ZIP Code area 90502 in West Carson and about 21% in the City of Los Angeles.
The locator gives 90502 several rows. The row for Los Angeles and West Carson north of West 223rd Street sends evictions to Compton but small claims, family law and unlimited civil to Long Beach. South of 223rd Street, every listed case type goes to Long Beach. Rows labeled as unincorporated areas west of Carson return Compton. If the property is in 90502, find the row that matches the street before you file.
Family law and restraining orders
For every Carson row we checked, divorce, custody and restraining order cases are filed at Compton. A family law summons is usually proved on form FL-115, and the petitioner can't serve it personally. A restraining order must be personally delivered to the restrained person, with the proof on DV-200 or CH-200. Give us a photo, a vehicle description, a work location and the hearing date.
Collections in Norwalk
Limited collection cases from Carson go to Norwalk, 12720 Norwalk Boulevard, where the directory lists the collections line at (562) 345-0898 in Room 101. Starting January 1, 2027, a consumer debt case calls for at least one service attempt at the debtor's home when that address is known or can be found with reasonable effort (CCP § 415.20(b)(3)). Send the home address and any workplace you have.
CSU Dominguez Hills and other workplaces
ZIP Code 90747 is a campus ZIP Code. The locator labels it California State University Dominguez Hills and routes it to Compton, and the Census file shows it as a tiny area inside Carson. Serving a student or employee there works best with a building, an office and the hours the person is usually present. The same goes for any large Carson employer. A front desk may not let a server past the lobby, so a home address alongside the work address saves time.
Serving the City of Carson
Carson City Hall is at 701 E. Carson Street. The city publishes hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and a main line of (310) 830-7600, so plan any attempt for those days. Under CCP § 416.50, the papers go to the clerk, secretary, president, presiding officer or other head of the governing body. Put the office and any claim or hearing deadline in the Letter of Instruction.
Businesses and missing defendants
For a corporation or LLC with a Carson address, look up its agent for service of process on the Secretary of State's bizfile Online search and send us the agent's name and address. Our serving corporations page covers the fallbacks, and our pages on CSC and CT Corporation cover the two most common commercial agents. If the person has left the Carson address, skip tracing searches for a newer one, and our post on skip tracing for legal cases explains how it works.
Sending a Carson request
Upload up to 5 PDFs on a Service Request. Name each person or business as the papers do, give every Carson address with its ZIP Code, and tell us which courthouse issued the case. Filing at Compton, Long Beach or Norwalk can go on the same request through our Los Angeles County court filing service. Get status updates by email, or call 855-582-5776. We make no guarantees for service.
Places near Carson
Compton is 3.9 miles away, Gardena 5.0, Lomita 5.1 and Signal Hill 5.2. We also serve Torrance and Long Beach, and the whole county is on our Los Angeles County page.