Of the Solano County cities, Vacaville is one of the closest to our Sacramento office, 31 miles away in a straight line. Only Dixon is nearer. Valpro Attorney Services serves papers at Vacaville homes and workplaces and files with the Solano County Superior Court in Fairfield. Our only office is in Sacramento, and there is no Valpro Attorney Services location in Vacaville.
Use a Service Request to upload up to 5 PDFs, or email them to Service@ValproAttorneyServices.com. For questions, call 855-582-5776, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.
Where do Vacaville residents file civil and small claims cases?
In Fairfield, at the Old Solano Courthouse, 580 Texas Street. Vacaville has no courthouse. The court's location list has 3 buildings in downtown Fairfield and 1 in Vallejo. The Old Solano Courthouse is tagged for civil, small claims and unlawful detainer cases and sits about 8.5 miles from the center of Vacaville.
| Building | Address | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Old Solano Courthouse | 580 Texas St, Fairfield 94533 | Civil, small claims, unlawful detainer |
| Hall of Justice | 600 Union Ave, Fairfield 94533 | Family law, probate, small claims hearings (Courtroom 303), Fairfield criminal and traffic clerks |
| Solano Justice Building | 321 Tuolumne St, Vallejo 94590 | Vallejo branch for criminal and traffic |
At the Old Solano Courthouse, the civil filing clerk answers the phone 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m. In person, the clerk works 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and civil and small claims appointments are offered. Every visitor goes through metal detectors at the entrance. Source: the court's location and division pages, checked October 2026.
Family law and probate: check the hours before you drive
Vacaville divorces, custody cases, guardianships and estates are filed at the Hall of Justice, 600 Union Avenue. The court posts two sets of walk-in hours for it. The Hall of Justice location page says drop-in from 8 to 11:30 a.m. or by appointment from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Family Law and Probate division pages list drop-in service from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The two pages disagreed when we checked in October 2026. Until the court aligns them, plan an in-person filing for the morning or book an appointment. The Solano Law Library is on the third floor of the same building.
Is e-filing mandatory for Vacaville cases?
For attorneys, yes. Solano Local Rule 20, effective January 2, 2025, makes e-filing mandatory for attorneys in civil, family and probate cases. Small claims and adoption can be e-filed too. The court's FAQ says self-represented filers may e-file but don't have to, and may keep filing by mail or in person.
Some practical points from the court's e-filing page:
- Registration. Every filer must register with an electronic filing service provider (EFSP) before e-filing. The court links a list of providers.
- Review. A clerk reviews each submission and emails an acceptance or a rejection.
- Stamped copy. The acceptance email links to the file-stamped copy, and the provider's site keeps it as well.
- Not available. Criminal, traffic and juvenile cases can't be e-filed in Solano.
The court doesn't take direct fax filings, except through a fax filing agency. Our Solano County court filing page covers how we file, in person or electronically. The court filings page explains what to send. For more on e-filing in general, see our post on California court e-filing.
Papers to serve in Vacaville?
Vacaville addresses, Elmira and the rural edges
Vacaville had 102,386 residents in the 2020 Census and an estimated 103,850 on July 1, 2025 (Census Vintage 2025). The city spans 2 Census ZIP Code areas, 95687 and 95688. Those areas were drawn by the Census and don't line up exactly with the city limit.
Just east of the city, Elmira is an unincorporated community with 193 residents in the 2020 Census. Farm parcels and rural roads ring parts of Vacaville, and remote areas are subject to different timelines. Give us a map pin, cross streets or directions for any address off the main roads.
Inside the city, the Letter of Instruction should cover:
- Unit details. Building and unit numbers for apartments, plus any gate code.
- Hours. When the person usually leaves for work or gets home.
- Workplace. The employer, the shift and the entrance staff use.
- Description. A photo, height or vehicle, so papers reach the right person.
- History. Any earlier attempts at the address and what happened.
Serving someone connected to Travis Air Force Base
Travis Air Force Base sits about 6.5 miles southeast of Vacaville. Entry to a military installation is controlled, and a civilian server can't assume access to housing or offices inside the gate. Some people tied to the base also have a home or a second address off base.
Tell us what you know: an off-base address, the person's duty schedule if you have it and any place they're regularly seen in Vacaville or Fairfield. We'll plan the attempts around those addresses. We make no guarantees for service.
Who may serve papers, and what 2027 adds
California lets any adult 18 or older who isn't a party to the case serve a summons (CCP § 414.10). A Vacaville landlord can't serve their own tenant, and a small claims plaintiff can't serve the defendant. A process server, a sheriff's deputy or another adult can.
AB 747 changes substituted service from January 1, 2027. Before papers can be left with a household member or a person in charge at work, diligence will be shown by attempts on at least 3 occasions, on 3 different days at 3 different times (CCP § 415.20(b)(2)). The proof of service will need date-, time- and GPS-stamped photographs (CCP § 417.10(a)(1)). Read our 2027 service of process guide for the full list. This is general information, not legal advice.
Serving a Vacaville business
Start with the name. The court's small claims page points filers to the city's business licensing records and the county clerk's fictitious business name index for local businesses. For a corporation or LLC, look it up on the Secretary of State's bizfile Online search.
A corporation's statement of information names its agent for service of process (Corporations Code § 1502(b)). An LLC must keep an agent on file too (Corporations Code § 17701.13). Send us the agent's name and address. If the agent is a registered agent company, we deliver to a person it has authorized. The serving corporations guide walks through officers and other options.
Sending a Vacaville Service Request
When you submit the request, choose Rush or Standard. Both are described on this page. Then attach the documents, name the party and add the Letter of Instruction. If the papers are subpoenas, include the date the witness must appear. Our post on how to serve a subpoena in California covers the timing rules.
Each request gets a confirmation email. Reply to that email any time for an update.
If the person has left the address, ask about skip tracing and investigations. We look for a newer address, send it to you and, once you approve, try again. For copies of filed papers from Fairfield, see document retrieval.
Cities near Vacaville
Fairfield is 7.5 miles southwest and Suisun City is just beyond it. Dixon is 9.9 miles to the northeast, and Winters is 12.1 miles north, across the line in Yolo County. Farther south is Vallejo. Every Solano County city is on the Solano County process serving page, and our office is in Sacramento.