Raleigh Municipal Court Information, Location and Rules

The Raleigh municipal court is called District Court. Raleigh in Wake County is the capital city of North Carolina. District courts in Wake County are under the jurisdiction of district 10. A municipal court serves to provide justice to all efficiently. It acts within limited territorial boundaries because its jurisdiction is limited to a particular municipality, county, city or community. In Wake County, all these functions are performed by the district courts.

The district courts in Wake County are divided into 42 courts for administrative convenience. The district courts have limited jurisdiction over mainly four categories of cases. They are criminal, juvenile, civil and magisterial.

Jurisdiction of the Raleigh Municipal Court

The district court holds preliminary hearings of felony cases as well as all misdemeanor and traffic infraction cases in its criminal division. Traffic violation cases include vehicle seizures, receiving driving tickets, etc. Criminal cases are heard by the District Court judges. In order to have a trial before a jury, an appeal to the higher court that is the Superior Court must be made.

District courts also share parallel responsibilities with the Superior Court to judge general civil cases. It can judge civil cases where the monetary claim is not more than $10,000. Unlike criminal cases, civil cases can be tried before a jury in the district courts. An appeal has to be made to the Court of Appeals.

All civil cases of monetary damages where the amount is less than or equal to $15,000 are subjected to non-binding arbitration by the order of the district courts. Cases regarding property issues, family matters (like divorce and child custody, child support, parent visitation, alimony, marriage certificate), real estate, and class action suits are not included in non-binding arbitration. A case is presented before a jury when it remains undecided at arbitration. Arbitration gives each of the involved parties a chance to present their version of the story to the arbitrator in an informal hearing.

Other Court Functions

The district court hears juvenile cases, mental health cases and cases on domestic relations and domestic violations. Cases of delinquency in children, child abuse, neglect or lack of discipline are all settled in the juvenile division of the district court.

On submission of a petition, the case is presented before a judge. The court hears juvenile criminal matters and non-criminal issues like drug or alcohol charges. It aims at reviving the child’s life by intervening and controlling his/her life. The court provides the young person a chance to change their lifestyle and turn sober, perform well in school, enhance their sense of responsibility and accountability. This helps them lead a good life devoid of any crime.

District attorney’s may refer any person in a mental health case to the mental health treatment court. People with “severe and persistent mental illness” or SPMI get a preference in this court. People with mental illness history records are referred to this court. They are clinically tested to check if they are eligible.

Family matters in which the parents may lose custody of their children due to negligence in upbringing or violent behavior, are referred to the Family Dependency/Drug Treatment Courts. This aids the defendants to get sober and helps them refrain from further acts of crime or violence. It also assists the parents to gain financial stability. The parents are kept under strong vigilance and undergo constant checks on breathalyzers.

Raleigh Municipal Court Judges

The chief district court judge is appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. They serve a term of four years during which they must live in the district for which they are elected. The district court judge presides over all matters occurring within that specific district.

Magistrates are judicial officers appointed in each district. Each magistrate serves the court for a period of two years. They are subordinates to the Chief District Court Judge. They issue arrest warrants in criminal cases and look after the criminal investigation procedure, initial appearance in the court, etc. The magistrate has the authority to preside over cases of small claims not exceeding $5,000. They also acknowledge waivers of trial and guilty pleas to beverage (alcoholic) violation, traffic, littering, wildlife, and marine fisheries.

Raleigh Municipal Court Contact Information

The courthouse offices are open for official transactions from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The courthouse is located at:

316 Fayetteville St Mall
Raleigh, NC 27601
(919) 792-4000

The mailing address is:

PO Box 351
Raleigh, NC 27602

By visiting the page http://www.nccourts.org/County/Wake/Directory.asp you will have a list of all the telephone numbers of the courthouse. The courthouse telephone directory can be very helpful in many cases.

There are local rules in each county. These rules vary for different courts. These are meant to make the court proceedings prompt and easy. The site http://www.nccourts.org/Courts/CRS/Policies/LocalRules/Default.asp?CountyID=92 has a list of all the local rules for the different courts.

If you want to conduct a judicial form search, visit the official website of North Carolina courts at http://www.nccourts.org/Forms/FormSearch.asp. You have to provide information like the AOC number, a keyword phrase or the form title, the category and the objective you are searching the form for.

The website of Wake County District Courts also gives the attorneys and the general public access to all information about the court like court officials, court programs, calendars and schedules, courthouse facilities and other information.

Raleigh Court Costs

There are certain offenses for which the offender does not have to appear before the court for a trial. These offenses can be waived, in which case, the necessary amount is to be paid and the offender pleads guilty. Certain traffic offenses, hunting, fishing or boating offenses, marine fish offenses can be waived depending on the case.

Visit http://www.nccourts.org/Courts/Trial/Costs/Default.asp. You can navigate from this page to know the court costs for criminal cases, civil cases, and special proceeding costs.

The Raleigh NC court in Wake County, North Carolina provides timely justice to everyone and its various treatment programs (drug or violence treatments in young people, adults or parents) makes the community better and free of crimes.