Ohio Municipal Court Information

The state of Ohio has 127 municipal courts which handle a variety of civil and criminal cases. Jury trials take place in most of the municipal courts in the state. Courts are funded locally and there are almost 210 judges presiding over each Ohio municipal court. The state of Ohio has 88 counties in all. While the constitution of Ohio allows each of the counties to set up a charter government of their own, Summit County has been the only one to do so. This particular county is of particular significant as it has three different municipal courts within its boundaries.

Jurisdiction

Criminal cases handled by the municipal courts of Ohio include all kinds of municipal ordinance violations as well as a host of township resolutions. Parking violations and misdemeanors committed within the boundaries of the municipal area regularly come up for hearing in the municipal courts of Ohio. Preliminary hearings of a serious criminal nature amounting to felony are dealt with by the judges of the municipal courts as well.

Small claims of less than $3,000 come under the jurisdiction of Ohio municipal courts as do all cases related to tort and contract. Civil dispute cases with claims less than $15,000 are usually heard at the local municipal level. Recovery of money or property, forcible entry, and unlawful detention are the most common types of cases tried by the municipal courts of the state.

Public nuisance cases and civil ordinance violations are handled routinely by the lower courts at the municipal level. Temporary orders of protection are issued by the municipal courts of Ohio in a situation of emergency. Housing and environmental divisions have been introduced in a few of the municipality courts of the state. The cases heard by these divisions do not have any financial limit imposed on them. They usually have a greater authority particularly when dealing with health and safety regulations or environmental ordinances applicable throughout the state.

Information about Ohio Courts

Although the jurisdictions of all Ohio municipal courts are almost identical, a few of them have incorporated local rules as well. The local rules of the Lima municipal court can be viewed by accessing the official website of Allen county at http://www.limamunicipalcourt.org/?page=10.

Courtroom schedules as well as matters pertaining to probation may vary from court to court. The clerk of courts at the Lima municipal court can be contacted at (419) 221-5275. You can also obtain the required information by sending an e-mail to ben.diepenbrock@cityhall.lima.oh.us.

Columbus, the capital of Ohio, is the seat of Franklyn County. The Franklyn county municipal court was known as the Columbus municipal court until 1968. The court currently has two judicial divisions.

The general division looks after all the civil and criminal cases whereas the environmental division has specific jurisdiction over all building, health and environmental issues. This division is a fairly recent addition, having started its operations in 1992.

The clerk of court serves both the divisions and is responsible for managing the cases tried at the municipal court of Franklyn county. Financial responsibilities of the court are also shouldered by the clerk of the municipal court.

The Franklyn county municipal court is located at:

375 South High Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215

You can access their website at http://www.fcmcclerk.com/. The local rules of Franklyn County can be viewed at http://www.fcmcclerk.com/localrules/index.php. The website also gives you the convenience of downloading the entire local rules simultaneously in .ZIP format.

Inquiries regarding criminal offenses as well as traffic violations can be obtained by sending an e-mail to criminal@fcmcclerk.com and traffic@fcmcclerk.com respectively. You need to forward your e-mail to civil@fcmcclerk.com if you are interested in civil cases processed by the municipal court.

Delaware County Courts

The Delaware county website (http://www.municipalcourt.org/) provides additional information to the general public. Entire courtroom proceedings can be viewed live by installing plug ins. Courtroom documents with digitalized pictures of defendants can also be viewed online by accessing this particular resource. Traffic violations, misdemeanor cases, small claims case or preliminary hearing for a felony can be viewed live from the privacy of your own home.

Payment for parking tickets can be sent to:

Delaware Municipal Court Clerk
70 N. Union Street
Delaware, Ohio 43015

Online payment has been withdrawn temporarily. The public can also check case search options at http://www.municipalcourt.org/cmiflash/court/http://www.peoplepublicrecords.org/index.html. Civil case search as well as the court schedule can be checked by logging on to the site as well.

If you require additional information about the activities of the municipal court, contact:

Justice Center
70 N. Union Street
Delaware, Ohio 43015

Summit County Court System

All three municipal courts of Akron, Barberton and Stow are located within Summit County. They perform similar functions and the jurisdiction of these courts are limited to felony arraignments, various cases of misdemeanors including traffic violations as well as small claims cases for less than $3,000.

The courthouse at Akron is conveniently located at:

217 South High Street, Room 830
Akron, OH 44308

The municipal court of Barberton, on the other hand, is situated at:

576 West Park Avenue, Room 205
Barberton, OH 44203

You can also view important contact numbers for Barberton municipal court by going to http://www.cityofbarberton.com/clerkofcourts/doc_http://www.peoplepublicrecords.org/info.html.

Stow Municipal court can be accessed at http://www.stowmunicourt.com/index.htm or

4400 Courthouse Drive
Stow, Ohio 44224
(330) 564-4200

Specific Ohio Municipal Court Information:

Ashtabula Court

Athens Court

Cincinnati Court

Columbus Ohio Court

Elyria Court

Franklin Ohio Court

Hamilton Ohio Court

Lorain Court