Tulare County stretches from the valley floor south of Fresno to the high Sierra, and Sequoia National Park sits in its eastern half. The 2020 Census counted 473,117 residents. Visalia, the county seat, has 141,384. Tulare (68,875) and Porterville (62,623) are the next largest cities, and Dinuba, Lindsay, Farmersville, Exeter and Woodlake follow.
We serve papers, file court documents and pull records across the county. Jobs are coordinated from our Sacramento office. Send a Service Request with the documents, or email PDFs to Service@ValproAttorneyServices.com.
North county, south county
Tulare County Superior Court files civil-side papers at two counters, one for each half of the county.
Visalia Division, County Civic Center, 221 S. Mooney Blvd. Civil Legal Filings is Room 201, and it takes civil, family law, probate and small claims papers. The building also hears appeals, CARE Court, conservatorships, guardianships, mental health, name change matters and restraining orders. The Self-Help Resource Center is in Room 203.
South County Justice Center, 300 E. Olive Ave., Porterville. It also has a Civil Legal Filings counter, listed on the court's civil, family law, probate and small claims pages. Its outside windows are open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for limited services, and it has its own Self-Help Resource Center.
Two other sites matter less for civil work. The Dinuba Division, 640 South Alta Avenue, handles criminal, family law and traffic hearings and payments, and it's closed Tuesdays and Fridays. Juvenile delinquency and dependency for the north county go to the William Silveria Jr. Juvenile Justice Center on Avenue 368 outside Visalia.
Child support has its own path. Monday through Thursday, DCSS-related papers are filed with the Clerk of Court inside the Visalia DCSS office at 8040 W. Doe Ave. Only on Fridays do they go to Room 201 or Porterville.
E-filing is optional
Tulare doesn't require e-filing for anyone. The court's eFiling FAQ answers the question directly: e-filing is currently not mandated for any case type. Attorneys and self-represented parties may e-file through an approved provider, or file on paper at either counter.
The court's case-type list for e-filing covers civil (general civil, small claims, probate, mental health, gun violence and restraining orders) and family. Our Court Filings service can go either way: e-filed, or walked to Room 201 or the Porterville counter. The Court Filings page lists what to send. This is general information, not legal advice.
The valley floor
Most Tulare County addresses are in the valley: Visalia, Tulare, Porterville and the farm towns along Highway 99 and Highway 65. Citrus groves, dairies and row crops fill the land between them, and the county's road grid uses numbered avenues and roads ("Avenue 368", "Road 112"). A rural address can be hard to spot without the cross road.
In small unincorporated communities like Earlimart, Richgrove, Pixley, Ivanhoe and Strathmore, a mailing address can be a P.O. box, so give the physical location. If the person's work hours change through the year, tell us the current ones.
The foothills and mountains
East of Highway 65, the land climbs fast. Three Rivers sits at the entrance to Sequoia National Park. Springville, Camp Nelson, California Hot Springs and Posey are mountain communities on narrow roads, and the 2020 Census counted 50 residents in California Hot Springs and 23 in Posey.
Service in these areas takes more planning. Some homes are cabins used part of the year, cell coverage can be thin and winter weather can slow or close mountain roads. Remote areas are subject to different timelines, and we confirm timing with you once the request comes in.
Before you send a Tulare County job
A complete Letter of Instruction makes the first attempt count:
- the physical address and the nearest cross road (avenue and road numbers help)
- a description of the home, the gate or the vehicle
- the person's employer, crew or packing house, if known
- whether a mountain property is lived in year-round
- any address you have in Fresno, Kings or Kern County
When an address is out of date, skip tracing can search for a newer one. Our post on skip tracing for legal cases explains how it fits into a service plan.
Serving companies, and the rules for servers
For a business, service usually goes through its agent for service of process. Our serving corporations page explains how to find the agent on the California Secretary of State's records.
Any adult who is at least 18 and not a party to the case can serve a summons; the who can serve papers guide explains the registration rule for paid servers. The proof of service guide shows how service is proved, and the AB 747 guide covers the January 1, 2027 changes. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sending the request and getting updates
Start a Service Request, attach up to 5 PDFs and pick Rush or Standard. We send a confirmation email, and every update comes in that thread. Call 855-582-5776 on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Neighboring county hubs: Fresno County, Kings County, Kern County and Inyo County.