Served & Found
Town court, justice court or Superior Court? A Cave Creek guide
Ask three people in Cave Creek where you go to sue someone and you may get three answers. "The court at town hall." "Somewhere on 40th Street." "Downtown." All three can be right, for different kinds of cases.
The court your case belongs to decides where you file, how long you have to serve the other side, and where the proof of service ends up. Here's a plain map of it. This is general information. The court clerk or a lawyer can confirm the details for your situation.
The short version
| Court | Where | Typical cases | |---|---|---| | Carefree-Cave Creek Consolidated Court | 37622 N. Cave Creek Road, Suite B, Cave Creek | traffic, misdemeanors, town code matters, protective orders | | Justice court for your precinct | often 18380 N. 40th Street, Phoenix | civil claims of $10,000 or less, small claims, most evictions | | Maricopa County Superior Court | downtown Phoenix, plus 40th Street for family cases | larger civil cases, divorce, custody, probate |
The rest of this piece explains each one.
The town court
Cave Creek and Carefree share one municipal court, the Carefree-Cave Creek Consolidated Court, at the town hall address on Cave Creek Road. A municipal court is a town court. It is set up for things like traffic citations, misdemeanor charges and violations of town ordinances, and it can issue protective orders.
What it isn't is a place to sue your neighbor for $6,000 over a fence or evict a tenant. People walk in expecting that and get sent elsewhere. If your problem is about money owed or getting someone out of a rental, keep reading.
The justice court
Maricopa County divides its justice courts into precincts. Justice courts hear civil cases where the amount involved is $10,000 or less, not counting interest, costs and allowed attorney fees, under A.R.S. 22-201. They also handle most residential evictions in the county.
Several north Valley justice courts, including Desert Ridge, Dreamy Draw, McDowell Mountain and Moon Valley, sit in the county's building at 18380 N. 40th Street in Phoenix.
Precinct lines follow their own logic, though, and a written description is never a substitute for checking. The justice courts tell people to look up an address on the Maricopa County interactive elections map, which shows the justice precinct along with every other district for that address. Do that before you file.
Superior Court
Cases above the justice court limit go to Maricopa County Superior Court, along with divorces, custody cases and probate matters. Superior Court's civil and probate departments are in downtown Phoenix, on and around Jefferson Street. Family cases can also be heard at the court's Northeast Regional Center, at the same 40th Street address as the justice courts.
From Cave Creek, that's either a drive down Cave Creek Road toward the 101, or a much longer trip into downtown. Know which building before you leave the house.
What the court means for service
Who can serve
In Superior Court civil cases, Rule 4(d) of the Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure says papers must be served by a sheriff or deputy, a constable or deputy, a certified private process server or a specially appointed person. Justice courts and family court have their own rules, but the practical answer is the same: hire a certified server or use the constable. You generally can't serve the papers yourself.
How long you have
In a Superior Court civil case, Rule 4(i) gives you 90 days from filing to serve, extendable for good cause. Eviction cases run on a much shorter timeline tied to the hearing date. Family cases follow the family law rules. Tell your process server which kind of case it is before they start.
Where the proof goes
Proof of service is filed in the case it belongs to. A justice court case at 40th Street, a family case on a different floor of the same building, and a civil case downtown each keep their own file. Put the court name and case number at the top of anything you send your server.
Cave Creek service, briefly
Serving papers out here has its own quirks: long driveways, locked ranch gates, addresses that don't show up on a map, and people who only use a post office box. We've written about rural Cave Creek addresses separately.
Every process server listed on Served & Found is on the Arizona Supreme Court's certified list. You can find servers covering the area on the North Valley process servers page. If you're the one who just got served, read what to do if you've been served first. The Cave Creek town page has more local listings.
Look at the top of your summons. The court's name is printed there, and it settles which part of this page applies to you.
See the board: everyone in Cave Creek · process servers only.