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Maricopa County Municipal and Justice Courts
Introduction
A lot of the every day work of the court system is done at the municipal and justice court level. Municipal courts are courts established by an incorporated city or town. A.R.S. § 22-401. Every incorporated city or town in Arizona must have a municipal court, although a city or town may enter into an inter-governmental agreement for court services with a nearby city within the same county or with the justice court which has the city within its jurisdiction. A.R.S. § 22-402. The judges and hearing officers in a city or town court are either employees of the city or town or are hired on a contract basis. Justice courts are county courts presided over by elected justices of the peace who hold four (4) year terms of office. A.R.S. § 22-102.
Matters Handled in Municipal Courts
Municipal courts handle:
- Criminal misdemeanor violations of Arizona law occurring within city limits
Justice courts have concurrent jurisdiction with city courts — maximum jail time of 6 months and maximum fine of $2,500
- Civil traffic violations of Arizona law
- Civil and criminal violations of the city's own ordinances
- Orders of protection
You can access detailed case information for some Municipal Courts within Maricopa County at the Arizona Supreme Court's Public Access to Court Case Information. Click on the “Courts Included” link to view coverage.
Matters Handled in Justice of the Peace Courts
Justice of the Peace courts handle:
- Criminal misdemeanor violations of Arizona law occurring within the justice court precinct
Justice courts have concurrent jurisdiction with city courts — maximum jail time of 6 months and maximum fine of $2,500
- Civil traffic violations of Arizona law
- Civil and misdemeanor criminal violations of any county ordinances
- Felony criminal case preliminary hearings
- Orders of protection
- Civil actions when the amount involved is $10,000.00 or less
- Forcible entry and detainer actions when the amount involved is $10,000.00 or less
You can access the Maricopa County Justice Court Information website for various items including court calendars, descriptions of procedure, fee schedules, contact information for the various courts, biographies of judges, newsletters and news releases.
Online Access to Court Rules
Different rules apply depending upon the kind of case a court is handling. For example, a criminal misdemeanor trial will use the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure, while a civil traffic violation hearing is governed by the Rules of Procedure in Civil Traffic Violation Cases. Other rules, such as the Rules of Evidence, will apply during certain court hearings.
Access to all these rules is available at http://www.supreme.state.az.us/rules/. Click on the “Current Rules” link and then “More Arizona Rules” if you do not see the rules you need. When you select the rules that you want to read or print, you will be prompted to fill out an online survey form before the text of the rules will display on your screen.
Court Web Sites
- Avondale Municipal Court
- Court's address, telephone number, hours, name of judge and general information about the court.
- Buckeye Magistrate Court
- Contains the court's address, telephone number, hours, and the name of the town magistrate. Information about the costs to issue and serve Orders of Protection and Injunctions of Harassment also found here.
- Carefree Municipal Court
- This page contains the court's telephone number and hours and describes the court's jurisdiction. No physical or mailing address is given for the court on this page.
- Cave Creek Municipal Court
- Site gives a short description of the court's judges and other court personnel. Telephone numbers and court hours are here, but no physical or mailing address given for the court until you click on the “Violation Codes” link on the left side of the page, and then click on either “Option 2” or “Option 3.” The violation codes and standard fines for the most common traffic offenses can be found here as well. You will also find computer forms here that can be filled in via the computer (You will have to print them out and mail or fax them to the court). An e-mail address for the court administrator/civil traffic judge is also given. Links to other parts of the city's web site are at the top of the page.
- Chandler Municipal Court
- The court's web site immediately gives you the court's location, hours, and telephone number. Links to other related sites and a link for feedback also exist. Links with information about courtroom conduct, criminal and civil cases procedure, Orders of Protection, Injunctions against Harassment, and monetary sanctions for traffic cases are easy to find.
- El Mirage Municipal Court
- Contains the court's address, a description of the cases handled by the court and links to a Criminal Rights Form and a Civil Rights Form. There is a link to a “Frequently Asked Questions” page, which includes the telephone number, hours of operation, and information about Orders of Protection, Injunctions Against Harassment & Defensive Driving School.
- Fountain Hills Municipal Court
- The court's address and telephone number are displayed along with a description of the court's jurisdiction. A link to a biography of the town's presiding judge and links to a few other parts of the city's website also appear on the page.
- Gilbert Municipal Court
- The court's address, hours, and telephone number are easy to find. Links to a map, information about court services, information about traffic offenses, and a quick link back to the Gilbert home page are on the left side of the page. Information on the page states that this court also acts as the municipal court for the town of Queen Creek under an intergovernmental agreement.
- Glendale City Court
- This site provides a short paragraph about the types of matters handled by the court along with links for the court address and telephone number, the name of the court administrator and the presiding judge, criminal case process information, and a link to a .pdf form for requesting public records from the court.
- Goodyear Municipal Court
- A description of the cases handled by the court appears. Location and contact information (phone number and address) are accessible via links on the left side of the screen.
- Guadalupe Town Court
- The court's address and telephone number are displayed along with the name of the presiding judge.
- Litchfield Park City Court
- The court's address and telephone number are displayed along with information on the court's hours and cases handled.
- Mesa Municipal Court
- This site has links to information on the court's services, options on traffic tickets, payments, etc. There is even a Spanish language version. Forms for Orders of Protection and a juror handbook are online in .pdf format.
- Paradise Valley Municipal Court
- In one page, you get the court's location, telephone number, hours, general jurisdiction, a telephone number for photo enforcement issues, and information about protective orders. Links to other town departments appear on the left.
- Peoria Municipal Court
- The home page gives a brief description of the court's jurisdiction and has a FAQ file for questions about the court. The court's address, hours and telephone number appear in the FAQ. A link to the city code is toward the bottom of the page as a link to the city's organizational chart. The blue “HOME” button is a quick link back to the city's home page.
- Phoenix Municipal Court
- A short description of the cases handled by the court appears and a general information number are at the top of the page. Click on “Courts/Justice” and you will find a long list of links to a variety of court-related information. Examples of what you will find are: civil and criminal court procedure, the city's “boot and tow” program for repeated parking violators, the procedure for getting an Order of Protection, juror information and handbook, and much more. Click on “Phoenix Municipal Court General Information” for the court's address, various phone numbers and hours. A good place to start is the “Answers to Commonly Asked Questions” link at the top of the “Courts/Justice” page.
- Queen Creek Municipal Court
- The is the town's court website. Queen Creek does not have its own municipal court system, but contact information is provided for the Gilbert Municipal Court.
- Scottsdale City Court
- The court's address, hours and telephone number as well as a link that gives directions from different highways are among the first pieces of information given here. Links to the majority of court information are on the right; these links include the Criminal and Civil Traffic divisions. A link to “Frequently Asked Questions” is located near the bottom of the column on the left of the page.
- Surprise City Court
- The court's address, hours, telephone number and a number of links to various topics including Defensive Driving School, Protection Orders and Juvenile Information.
- Tempe Municipal Court
- The court's address, hours, and telephone number are provided. Links to explanations of the procedures for both civil and criminal offenses, Defensive Driving School, and the fine schedule for various offenses are located at the top of the page.
- Tolleson City Court
- The court's address, telephone number, and the names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers of the presiding judge and other court employees are provided along with a description of the types of cases handled.
- Wickenburg Town Court
- The court's web page identifies the judge and lists the court's telephone number and address, along with a short description of the cases handled at the court. There are links on the left side of the screen for “FAQs,” and information about Traffic Offenses, Defensive Driving Class and Protection Orders.
- Youngtown Municipal Court
- This is the town's web site. As of November 29, 2007, there is no mention of the court on the town's website.
By Rose Gavin; updated 11/07. Friendly URL: http://www.law.asu.edu/MaricopaCt.
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