Self Help Center - Monterey County Superior Courts

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Monterey County Superior Court Self Help Center

The Self Help Center provides information and explains options without giving legal advice or representing any parties.

Trying to locate a courthouse? Visit our main site for listings of court phone numbers and courthouse locations.

Looking for a form? State forms are on the Judicial Council site and local forms are on the Court's main site.

Need help in person? For additional help after reviewing this website, you can:

Come to the Self Help Center office in Monterey, where the Family Law Facilitator is also located.
Get help at the counter from clerks at the courthouses.
Attend a workshop at the Self-Help Center. We offer workshops on family law topics, such as divorce and child support, visitation and custody issues.

Need to contact the Court? See our contact page for information on how to phone or visit the Court.

Looking for information about a particular case or hearing date? Visit our public access Case Info website. Case and calendar information is available for civil, family, probate and small claims cases. However, you will not be able to look up information on cases that are confidential, including cases involving evictions, adoptions, mental health issues and custody petitions for parents who have not married.

Need legal advice but can’t afford a lawyer? You can talk to a local legal aid group. You can get a referral to a lawyer or legal aid group from the local bar association. If you do not understand something on this site, or if you have trouble filling out your court forms, talk to a lawyer. If you are representing yourself, and you fill out your own court forms, we recommend you have a lawyer look at them before you file them.

You can get more help at these websites:

Superior Court of California (County of Monterey) Home Page, the Court's main website
Public Access Case Info Home Page, the Court's site that provides online case and calendar information (for Civil, Family, Probate and Small Claims cases that are not confidential)
County of Monterey Home Page
The Monterey County Bar Association. Choose "Legal Consumer Resource Center" for information about how to find a lawyer.
Monterey College of Law Small Claims Advisor offers assistance with Small Claims questions by telephone and Small Claims Mediation, Call (831)582-5235.
Web Site of the Judicial Council of California. Click on the "Help Center".
LawHelpCalifornia.org - helping low-income Californians solve legal problems.
www.sucorte.ca.gov: informacion legal gratis ahora disponible para la comunidad de habla hispana.

We can help you with:

Child Support Issues
Paternity Issues, including Set Aside Motions
Child Custody & Visitation
Spousal Support
Dissolutions (Divorce)
Legal Separation/Annulment
Domestic Partnerships
Elder Abuse
Domestic Violence
Civil Harassment
Probate Guardianships
Unlawful Detainers and Answers
Referrals to Small Claims Advisors
Monterey County Bar Association Referrals
Referrals to other community resources

We cannot help you with:

Landlord/Tenant Disputes in Section 8 Housing or other situations
Immigration
Juvenile Court Matter (delinquency, dependency-including CPS matters)
Traffic
Probate matters (such as wills, trusts and conservatorships)
Dismissing Criminal Domestic Violence Restraining Orders
Most General Civil Litigation
Workers’ Compensation
Criminal Matters of Any Kind

Our Location

First Floor of the Monterey Courthouse
1200 Aguajito Road
Monterey, CA 93940

Our Hours

Monday: 12:30 – 4:00 p.m.
Tuesday-Thursday: 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

New! at the Self Help Center

Our Hours

Monday	12:30 PM – 4:00 PM
Tuesday	8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Wednesday	8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Thursday	8:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Friday	8:00 AM – 1:30 PM

PHONE: (831) 647-5800 ext. 3005

The Self-Help Center is offering appointments on the third Monday of each month at the courthouse in King City.

Our History

The State of California’s Administrative Office of the Courts began its Equal Access Project in response to a growing number of individuals representing themselves in court on a variety of matters.

California’s former Chief Justice, Ronald M. George, made access to justice a key goal of the California Courts. His support of the Administrative Office of the Courts’ efforts to expand services to self-represented litigants has helped create Self-Help Centers in every county in California, including Monterey’s Self-Help Center.

The Monterey County Superior Court opened its Self-Help Center in March 2008. The Self-Help Center in Monterey is a part of the Judicial Council’s Equal Access Project designed to provide assistance to self-represented litigants in civil and family law matters.

Meet The Staff
	Peggy Hill is a California attorney and has been the Family Law Facilitator in Monterey since April of 2007. She was a family law attorney for 24 years before coming to the Facilitator’s office. She graduated from UC Berkeley and Boalt Hall School of Law.
	Maria L. Mendoza is the staff attorney for the Self-Help Center at the Monterey County Superior Court. Ms. Mendoza previously worked for California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) for 7 years. She graduated from UC Irvine with a BA degree, and obtained her law degree from McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento.