• New! The Superior Court is now imaging documents in some Central & East County Civil Division court cases.

• Civil courts have jurisdiction over disputes involving money, title or possession of real property, enforcing a contract, protecting one's civil rights, or seeking compensation for a civil tort. The plaintiff is the person suing; the person who is sued is the defendant.

• Petitions to change one's name/gender, petition to change a child's name, or petitions seeking civil harassment restraining orders are also processed by the Civil Division. The petitioner is the filing party; the party answering the petition is called the respondent.

• You may be able to settle your dispute without going to court. To find out more information about Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), visit our Arbitration/Mediation page or contact the National Conflict Resolution Center (formerly known as the San Diego Mediation Center) by calling (619) 238-2400 or by fax at (619) 238-8041.

• Find the zipcode or city name where the person or company you are suing lives or does business, or where the incident occurred. The complaint should be filed in the corresponding court location (venue).

• Filing via a fax filing agency:  The court will accept for filing all documents submitted by fax filing agencies, except those specified in the California Rules of Court.
  
  
• Presentation by direct fax (civil limited cases):  Any document not required to be accompanied by a payment may be filed directly by fax. The numbers for direct fax filing may be obtained by contacting the assigned business office.

The business office will not provide conformed copies unless a request is submitted to the court with a self addressed envelope stamped and a total fee for copies of the faxed document.