In The News
King City to get court self-help services
Thursday June 25, 2009
By The Salinas Californian
The Salinas Californian, June 25, 2009
http://www.thecalifornian.com/article/20090625/NEWS01/906250313
King City to get court self-help services
The Monterey County Superior Court will be expanding its Self-Help Center services to the King City courthouse on the second Friday starting on July 10. Currently, the Self-Help Center services are only located at the Monterey courthouse.
The expansion is part of the court's effort to provide greater access to the court to residents of the south county.
The center provides free legal assistance primarily in family law, including divorces, child custody, visitation, child support, domestic violence, and paternity cases.
But the center also provides limited assistance in civil and small claims cases.
The Monterey County Superior Court opened its center in March 2008 and currently assists 1,000 approximately 1200 people per month on average. It 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.
"Improved customer service and access to the court's resources is what we continue to strive for, and providing access to our court staff at a more convenient location is a step in the right direction," saidLenor McLaughlin, director of court operations.
"It takes someone over one hour to drive to the Monterey Courthouse from King City or Greenfield, and an hour to return," said Luis Alejo, staff attorney of the Self-Help Center. "This expansion will make it much easier for south county residents to obtain access to the courts."
King City hours: July 10, Aug. 14, Sept. 11, Oct. 9, Nov. 6 and Dec. 11 from 8:30am to 11:30am.
Information: Call 831-647- 5890, or visit www.montereycourts.org and click the link to Self-Help Center.