Ventura County Small Claims Court: A Local Guide

Updated May 2026

If you live in Ventura County and somebody owes you money, your case belongs in small claims court. Ventura's setup has one quirk worth knowing up front; all filings go to the Hall of Justice in Ventura, but your hearing may be scheduled at a different courthouse based on where the dispute happened. This guide walks you through filing at the Hall of Justice, the fees, the timeline, and the Ventura-specific details that will make you feel confident on court day.

Hall of Justice: The only place to file

Every Ventura County small claims case is filed at one location; the Hall of Justice in Ventura. This is true no matter where you live in the county or where the dispute happened.

• Filing address: 800 South Victoria Avenue, Ventura, CA 93009
• Phone: 805-289-8521
• Small Claims Advisor: free help from a court attorney (procedural help only).
• Clerk's office hours: Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., except court holidays

Hearings, on the other hand, get routed based on the zip code where your claim arose.

• East end of the county (Simi Valley, Moorpark, Thousand Oaks): hearings at the East County Courthouse, 3855-F Alamo Street, Simi Valley, CA 93063
• Everywhere else in the county (Ventura, Oxnard, Camarillo, Port Hueneme, Fillmore, Ojai): hearings at the Juvenile Justice Center / Oxnard Courthouse, 4353 East Vineyard Avenue, Oxnard, CA 93036
• Hall of Justice itself: also hosts some small claims hearings; your notice will say

The single most important detail; don’t file at the East County or Oxnard courthouses, even if that's where your hearing will be. The Hall of Justice in Ventura is the only place to file. The other two are hearing rooms only.

For a fuller picture of how California small claims works statewide, see our complete guide to filing small claims in California.

THE LOCAL QUIRK MOST PEOPLE MISS

Ventura's free Small Claims Advisor works for the DA, not the court.

Ventura is the only major CA county where the District Attorney's office runs the free Small Claims Advisor program. Call 805-654-5054 in Ventura or 805-306-7930 in Simi Valley. The advisor is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 to 11:45 a.m. and 1:00 to 4:45 p.m., and they help anybody who walks in or calls; no income test, no DA case required. The DA-ran advisor also handles bad-check and non-sufficient-funds cases, which connects criminal-side restitution to civil collection in a way no other county offers. Everywhere else in California, this kind of help comes from the court's self-help center, which is usually a longer wait.

How to File the SC-100 in Ventura

The form you need is the SC-100, called the Plaintiff's Claim and Order to Go to Small Claims Court. Download the fillable PDF from the California Courts website (search "SC-100") or pick up a paper copy at the Hall of Justice.

The form asks for your name and address, the defendant's name and address, the amount you're suing for, and a brief description of why. You only need to write three to five sentences. The judge won't read the form before the hearing.

Ventura gives you four ways to file:

• E-filing. Ventura accepts small claims e-filings through approved Electronic Filing Service Providers (One Legal, FileAndServeXpress, and similar). It’s useful in many instances. There is a small convenience fee on top of the court filing fee.
• In person. Walk into the small claims clerk's office at the Hall of Justice. Bring the form, your filing fee, and a photo ID. The clerk will stamp your form, assign you a hearing date and location, and hand you back a copy. Allow 30 to 60 minutes for the visit.
• By mail. Mail the form, the fee, and a self-addressed stamped envelope to 800 South Victoria Avenue, Ventura, CA 93009. This is the slowest option (10 to 15 business days). Only use this method if you can't make it in person.
• Drop box. Drop your completed form, the fee, and a self-addressed envelope at the Hall of Justice. It’s the same processing time as in-person filing, but there’s no waiting in line.

The clerk will assign your hearing 30 to 70 days out and give you the location at the time of filing. Read your notice carefully; the courthouse on the notice is where you go on your hearing day, not necessarily the Hall of Justice where you filed.

Filing fees in Ventura follow the statewide California schedule that took effect January 1, 2026. There is no Ventura surcharge.

For claims under $1,500, the filing fee is $30. For claims between $1,500 and $5,000, the fee is $50. For claims over $5,000 up to the $12,500 individual limit, the fee is $75. If you've filed more than 12 small claims cases in the last year, then there's a higher rate of $100.

If paying the filing fee up front isn't realistic, California has fee waivers.File form FW-001 along with your SC-100. You qualify automatically if you receive public benefits like Medi-Cal, CalWORKs, or SSI. The clerk processes most fee waiver requests on the spot.

If you win your case, the judge typically orders the defendant to pay your filing fee back to you.

The costs for service are separate from the filing fees. The Ventura County Sheriff's Civil Bureau charges around $40 to serve papers. A private process server runs $50 to $125 depending on how easy the defendant is to find. Certified mail through the court clerk costs $15 per defendant but is the least reliable method. For more, see our guide to serving someone in California small claims.

Logistics at Your Hearing Courthouse

Read your hearing notice and look up your specific courthouse before the court day. Here's what to expect at each of the three possible locations.

Hall of Justice (Ventura). A modern county complex on Victoria Avenue, with paid surface parking on site (typically $2 to $5 for a half-day). Standard airport-style security screening at the entrance; allow 10 minutes. Small claims hearings rotate between departments on the upper floors.

Juvenile Justice Center / Oxnard Courthouse. Located in northeast Oxnard near the Camarillo airport. There’s on-site free parking. It’s a smaller building than the Hall of Justice, and the calendar is busier; so, expect your hearing to start within an hour of the listed time.

East County Courthouse (Simi Valley). Off the 118 in Simi Valley. There’s free parking. It’s a smaller and calmer building than the others; many hearings start within 15 to 30 minutes of the listed time.

Coastal-county pattern. A lot of Ventura small claims cases involve security deposits, vacation-rental disputes, contractor work on coastal properties, and HOA fee fights. If your case is one of these, gather your evidence in chronological order; the judge will appreciate the structure, and you'll feel calmer presenting.

Ventura-Specific Tips

• File at the Hall of Justice, not your hearing courthouse. This catches more people off guard than any other Ventura quirk. The Hall of Justice in Ventura is the only place to file, even if your hearing will be in Oxnard or Simi Valley.
• Confirm your hearing courthouse before you leave home. Pull up your hearing notice the night before. The location is on the notice.
• Use e-filing, if you live in Camarillo, Simi, or Thousand Oaks. The drive to Ventura for a 10-minute filing visit isn't worth it; e-filing through an EFSP saves you the round trip.
• Look up the defendant's correct legal name BEFORE you file; especially if they're a business. Suing "Sunset Property Management" instead of "Sunset Property Management Inc." can get your case dismissed. Use the California Secretary of State business search at bizfile.sos.ca.gov.
• For coastal rental disputes, bring the lease and the dated photos. Ventura judges hear a lot of vacation-rental and security-deposit cases. The two pieces of evidence that move the needle are the signed lease and dated photos of the property at move-in and move-out.
• Bring your phone but keep it silent. Many Ventura judges allow you to pull up texts, photos, or emails on your phone during the hearing.

Common Ventura Filing Mistakes

• Filing at the wrong courthouse. The East County Courthouse in Simi Valley and the Oxnard Courthouse are hearing rooms only for small claims, not filing windows. Take your SC-100 to the Hall of Justice in Ventura.
• Showing up at the wrong courthouse on hearing day. Read your hearing notice. The courthouse on the notice is where you go; not necessarily the building where you filed.
• Improper service. Personal service through the Ventura County Sheriff or a registered process server is the gold standard. Substituted service is allowed but has stricter rules. Whatever method you use, file the proof of service with the court before your hearing.
• Suing the wrong entity. If you sue a person but the dispute was with their LLC, your judgment is worthless. Verify the entity name on the Secretary of State website first.
• Skipping the evidence exchange. CA requires both sides to share evidence at least 10 days before the hearing. Skipping this can get your evidence excluded.

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Filing small claims in Ventura County is straightforward once you understand there’s only one place to file, but three different locations your actual hearing will take place. You file at the Hall of Justice in Ventura, then show up at the courthouse listed on your notice, and bring your evidence in chronological order. The system works when you understand it.

If you want a complete walkthrough, see our full California Small Claims Guide, which covers every step from before-you-file decisions through after-you-win collection.

ClaimKit Help is an educational guide, not legal advice. Verify court rules, forms, and deadlines before filing.

Source: California Courts Self-Help: Small Claims