Lafayette is a small city in the hills of central Contra Costa County, with 25,391 residents at the 2020 Census. BART's station page calls it a place with a quiet rural atmosphere and a distinctive downtown. Valpro Attorney Services serves divorce and custody papers, civil summonses, probate notices, subpoenas and eviction papers there. We can also file a Lafayette case with the county court in Martinez.
There's no Valpro Attorney Services office in Lafayette. Requests are run from our Sacramento office, about 60 miles away in a straight line, and you can get the updates by email.
Fewer homes per mile, longer approaches
Lafayette spreads about 25,000 people over roughly 15 square miles of land, according to the Census Bureau's 2020 area figures. That works out to about 1,700 residents per square mile. Neighboring Walnut Creek has about 3,500 and Concord about 4,100. Lower density usually means larger lots and fewer neighbors in sight of the door. The approach to a house can also be longer.
Here are the details that help a server reach the right door on a hillside or semi-rural lot:
- Where the house sits relative to the street. Is it above or below the road, at the end of a shared driveway, or behind a gate?
- The mailbox position. On some private lanes, mailboxes for several houses sit together at the bottom.
- Vehicles the person drives, when known. With no doorman or neighbor to ask, a car in the driveway is often the only sign someone's home.
- Dogs or a locked gate. If the gate is closed, say whether there's a call box or a side entrance.
- A photo of the house, from a listing or a street-view image.
None of this changes the rules for service. It changes how many trips it takes. Our proof of service guide explains what the server records after each attempt.
One ZIP Code, more than one jurisdiction
Lafayette has a single ZIP Code, 94549, but the ZIP and the city don't line up. Census's 2020 relationship file puts about three-quarters of the 94549 land area inside Lafayette. The rest is outside the city, mostly in the unincorporated Reliez Valley community and in land outside any Census place. Small slivers fall in Moraga and Orinda.
For filing, the result is the same either way. The court's table routes 94549 to the Wakefield Taylor Courthouse in Martinez. Moraga (94556, 94570, 94575) and Orinda (94563) go there too. Where the line matters is outside the courtroom: which police agency responds, or whether a city ordinance applies to a rental. If a Lafayette-addressed property is part of the dispute, confirm whether it's inside the city before you rely on a city rule.
Lamorinda: three towns, one court
Lafayette, Moraga and Orinda are often grouped together as Lamorinda. The City of Lafayette's own site uses the name for shared services, such as the Lamorinda Spirit Van and the Lamorinda School Bus. For a process server, the grouping is useful in a practical way. A person who lives in one of the three often works, shops or has family in the others, and all three send their cases to the same Martinez courthouses.
When you only have a work address, or an old address in a neighboring town, send them all. A second address in Moraga or Orinda can go on the same Service Request.
Papers to serve in Lafayette?
Where Lafayette papers get filed
| Case type | Courthouse | Straight-line distance from central Lafayette |
|---|---|---|
| Civil, small claims, unlawful detainer | Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, 725 Court St, Martinez | About 8.8 miles |
| Probate, guardianship, conservatorship | Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, Martinez | About 8.8 miles |
| Family law, restraining orders, adoptions | Spinetta Family Law Center, 751 Pine St, Martinez | About 7.3 miles |
| Traffic | Walnut Creek Juvenile and Traffic Center | Not a civil filing point |
Source: contracosta.courts.ca.gov, checked October 2026.
The Wakefield Taylor clerk windows are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on weekdays. The court treats anything in its drop box between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. as filed that day. For represented parties, e-filing through Odyssey eFileCA has been mandatory since July 5, 2022. The court's Ninth Amended Standing Order (February 2, 2026) extends the list to probate and appeals, though wills, codicils and estate planning documents in probate matters still have to be lodged on paper. Our Contra Costa County court filings page covers both routes.
Family law papers and the Spinetta counter
Divorce, custody and support cases from Lafayette are filed at the Peter L. Spinetta Family Law Center on Pine Street in Martinez. The court's page says the building holds five of the county's seven family law-related courtrooms, and the filing counter is just inside on the left. That counter takes every family law filing except two: requests for Temporary Emergency Orders and Domestic Violence Restraining Order papers. DVRO paperwork can be submitted in person or through the e-filing portal, the page says.
Once a petition is filed, the other party still has to be served. For a respondent in Lafayette, we need the full name, the home address and, ideally, a work address and a photo. Tell us if anyone else in the household is also a party. If you're not sure who may serve the papers, read our guide on who can serve papers in California.
Estates and probate notices
All probate, guardianship and conservatorship documents in Contra Costa County are filed and heard at Wakefield Taylor in Martinez. The court's probate page lists (925) 608-2613 for questions about wills, trusts and estates.
Probate work often means serving notices on heirs and beneficiaries who live in different places: one in Lafayette, one in Sacramento, one out of state. Put every name and address on one request, and tell us the hearing date. If an heir's current address is unknown, our skip tracing service and the post on finding a defendant in California explain how we search.
Motion deadlines in Contra Costa civil cases
For Lafayette litigants with a motion on calendar, the court's motions page sets these service rules:
- Oppositions: served on opposing counsel at least nine court days before the hearing.
- Replies: served at least five court days before the hearing.
- Method: personal delivery, fax, express mail or another method that ensures the papers arrive no later than one court day after filing.
When a hand delivery is the safest way to meet the deadline, add it to the request as a court messenger job. Our post on court messenger service for attorneys explains how it works.
Sending Lafayette papers
Upload up to 5 PDFs to a Service Request. Name the person exactly as the papers do, list every address, and describe the property. Choose Rush or Standard. You can reach us at 855-582-5776 or Service@ValproAttorneyServices.com. We make no guarantees for service.
For a business defendant, look up its agent for service of process on the California Secretary of State's bizfile Online. See our serving corporations page for each route. Starting January 1, 2027, AB 747 changes parts of substituted service; our AB 747 guide explains what's different.
Near Lafayette
Straight-line distances from central Lafayette:
- Orinda (2.8 miles) and Moraga (3.1), the rest of Lamorinda
- Walnut Creek (4.4) and Pleasant Hill (5.0)
- Martinez (7.4), where the courthouses are
Every city we serve in the county is on our Contra Costa County page.