Marina is a city on Monterey Bay in Monterey County. The 2020 Census counted 22,359 residents, and the Census Bureau's July 1, 2025 estimate is 23,256. We serve small claims, summonses, unlawful detainer papers, subpoenas, family law petitions and restraining order papers on people and businesses across the city.
Marina requests are handled from our Sacramento office, about 134.5 miles north in a straight line. Upload the papers on a Service Request, or email them to Service@ValproAttorneyServices.com. Questions go to 855-582-5776.
A courthouse in town, with a narrow job
The Superior Court of California, County of Monterey, has a courthouse in Marina, but it isn't where most Marina cases start. The court describes the Marina Courthouse this way:
| Item | Marina Courthouse |
|---|---|
| Address | 3180 Del Monte Boulevard, Marina, CA 93933 |
| Courtrooms | 20 and 21 |
| Phone | (831) 883-5300 |
| Building hours | 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., Monday–Friday |
| Mailing address | P.O. Box 2010, Marina, CA 93933 |
| What happens there | Traffic services and hearings, night court, small claims hearings, child support hearings, court calendars, forms and self-help resources |
Source: Monterey County Superior Court, Marina Courthouse page, checked October 2026.
Filing is a different matter. Monterey Local Rule 2.2 requires probate, guardianship and conservatorship proceedings, and all civil proceedings, to be commenced in the Monterey Division. The rule's list of civil proceedings includes family law, civil domestic violence, harassment, child support agency cases, paternity, adoption, small claims and vehicle forfeiture. So a Marina landlord, plaintiff or petitioner files at the Monterey Courthouse, 1200 Aguajito Road, about 8 miles south in a straight line.
What happens if you hand papers in at Marina
Monterey's local rules have a safety valve for filers who aren't on mandatory e-filing. Rule 19.12 says papers may be delivered to the Salinas, Marina or Monterey courthouse, but they will be filed only at the location with jurisdiction. Papers delivered to the wrong location are date stamped "received" and carried by court courier to the right division. They're treated as filed at the date and time of that "received" stamp.
There are two catches:
- Complete papers only. A new complaint or document that turns out to be incomplete, or arrives without the filing fee, is deemed not filed and returned.
- Drop boxes run slower. The court's eviction page says drop box and mail filings are processed the next day, and using the Salinas or Marina drop box may add one more day.
Attorneys don't use this route for most work. Local Rule 1.7 makes e-filing mandatory for represented parties, and the court's e-filing page says self-represented parties are encouraged but not required to e-file. The court also notes that Tyler Technologies can no longer submit filings there, so check your provider. Our Monterey County court filing service handles e-filing and counter filings in Monterey.
Small claims trials in Department 20
Marina is where Monterey County's small claims cases are tried. The court's small claims page says all small claims documents are filed at the Monterey Courthouse and all hearings are heard at the Marina Courthouse. Trials run Thursdays at 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in Department 20, and the party filing the claim may ask the processing clerk for the morning or the afternoon calendar. Parties should arrive at least 15 minutes before the trial time.
Two court programs shape the weeks before a Marina trial:
- Mediation. The court's policy is to refer every small claims case to mediation before the hearing, free of charge. After the claim is served, the parties call the Mandell-Gisnet Center at (831) 582-5234 at least 5 days before the hearing. The session is set for two days before trial, by video or by phone.
- Remote appearance. A party can ask to appear by video by filing form RA-010 at least 10 days before the hearing. The court decides, and sends written notice with login details by email or mail.
Neither one replaces service. The court's How To's page says plaintiffs still have to notify defendants and meet the service requirements for the claim.
Serving a defendant before a Marina trial
The small claims plaintiff can't serve the claim personally. The court's How To's page lists the ways it can be done: personal service by any adult who isn't a party, substituted service by the sheriff or a non-party adult, a process server, or certified mail sent by the small claims clerk for an extra fee. Certified mail counts only once the defendant's signed receipt comes back to the clerk. If the defendant refuses to sign, service isn't complete.
The deadlines run backward from the trial date:
| Method | Defendant in Monterey County | Defendant outside the county |
|---|---|---|
| Personal service | At least 15 days before trial | At least 20 days before trial |
| Substituted service (mailing date) | At least 20 days before trial | At least 25 days before trial |
Substituted service is complete 10 days after the copy is mailed. The proof of service, form SC-104, goes to the small claims clerk before trial. The How To's page says "at least five (5) days before" in one paragraph and "at least 2 days before" in another, so plan for the earlier date. Our proof of service guide covers SC-104, and who can serve papers in California explains the options.
The court's small claims process page also sets the dollar limits. Individuals and sole proprietors can claim up to $12,500. Corporations, partnerships, public entities and other businesses are limited to $6,250.
Papers to serve in Marina?
Child support and traffic calendars in Marina
Small claims isn't the only calendar heard on Del Monte Boulevard. Monterey Local Rule 1.4 assigns family cases involving child support where the Department of Child Support Services is a party to Department 21 and the commissioner assigned there. Courtroom 21 is one of the two at the Marina Courthouse, and the court lists child support hearings among the building's services. Other family law matters stay in Monterey: the same rule sends even-numbered cases to Department 17, odd-numbered cases to Department 16, and domestic violence restraining orders to Department 16-A.
Local Rule 14.15 sets night court for the last Monday of every month, holidays excluded, for traffic arraignments and special settings. No pretrial hearings or court trials are set for night court.
For a parent in a child support case, that means the case can be filed in Monterey and heard in Marina. When a request for order or other family law paper has to be served on the other parent, send us the hearing notice along with it, so the service date fits the Department 21 calendar. Our page on how to serve a subpoena in California covers witness papers for those hearings too.
Three ZIP Code areas, one shared with Seaside
The Census Bureau's 2020 relationship file splits Marina across three ZIP Code areas:
- 93933. Most of the city's land, and nothing outside Marina's limits.
- 93908. A smaller part of the city. The same ZIP Code area also covers part of Salinas and a sliver of Chualar.
- 93955. A thin edge of Marina. This ZIP Code area is mostly Seaside.
That last one matters near the former Army post. California State University, Monterey Bay says its campus grew out of Fort Ord, a decommissioned U.S. Army base that officially closed in 1994, and it lists its own address as 100 Campus Center, Seaside, CA 93955. So an address in that area may read Seaside even where you expected Marina, or the reverse. For service, the name on the envelope matters less than the building, the unit and how to get in. ZIP Code areas are Census approximations of postal ZIP Codes.
Every one of those addresses is in Monterey County, so the court and the filing location stay the same.
What to put on a Marina Service Request
The details that save an attempt depend on the kind of address, so send what applies:
- Attach the file-stamped papers. For small claims, that's the Plaintiff's Claim and Order to Go to Small Claims Court showing the Department 20 trial date.
- List every unit, building and gate. A building letter or gate code on a large complex makes the difference.
- Add a workplace. If the person works in Salinas, Monterey or elsewhere, a work address gives the server a second place to try.
- Note schedules. Shift times, class schedules or days off.
- State the deadline. The trial date, minus the service deadline in the table above.
Choose Rush or Standard when you submit, and get each update by email. If an attempt shows the person has moved, our skip tracing service can look for a current address.
Evictions from Marina
A Marina unlawful detainer is filed at the Monterey Courthouse, not in Marina. The court's eviction page describes a free mediation program for small claims and eviction cases, run with the Monterey College of Law and the Mandell-Gisnet Center, open only when both sides are self-represented. A request for a stay of eviction after a writ issues can be filed online, at the Aguajito Road courthouse or in the drop box at any location. The court calls a stay an extraordinary remedy, asks for it as soon as possible after the sheriff posts the residence, and says to allow at least 48 hours for processing.
After personal service, the tenant has 10 court days to file an Answer, according to the California Courts self-help guide. Starting January 1, 2027, AB 747 adds a diligence standard for substituted service and new proof requirements; see our AB 747 guide. This is general information, not legal advice.
Serving a business in Marina
For a corporation or LLC, serve its agent for service of process as listed with the California Secretary of State. The court's How To's page gives the same advice and suggests confirming the agent's name before filing. If the agent is a registered agent firm, see our pages on CSC Lawyers Incorporating Service and CT Corporation, or the general guide to serving corporations.
Near Marina
Straight-line distances from central Marina:
- Seaside, 4.1 miles, and Sand City, 5.2
- Del Rey Oaks, 6.6 miles
- Monterey, 7.5 miles, home of the civil courthouse
- Salinas, 8.6 miles, the county seat
All of the county's communities are on the Monterey County process server page.
We make no guarantees for service.