Court of Common Pleas and Municipal Court
| Court of Common Pleas and Municipal Court | |
|---|---|
| Type | State trial courts in Philadelphia County |
| Common Pleas | 101 judges; Trial, Family and Orphans' Divisions; President Judge Nina Wright Padilla |
| Municipal Court | 27 judges; Criminal, Civil and Traffic Divisions; President Judge T. Francis Shields |
| Parent | First Judicial District |
| Appeals go to | Superior Court, Commonwealth Court, Pennsylvania Supreme Court |
| Website | courts.phila.gov |
The Court of Common Pleas and the Philadelphia Municipal Court are the two trial courts that make up the First Judicial District. The Court of Common Pleas is the general trial court of Pennsylvania counties and handles serious crimes, larger civil cases, family law and estates. Municipal Court, which Pennsylvania authorizes in Philadelphia, is a court of limited jurisdiction for lesser crimes, small civil disputes, landlord-tenant cases and traffic matters. Both are state courts with elected judges. [1]
1 Court of Common Pleas
The Court of Common Pleas has 101 judges, led by a President Judge elected by the judges to a five-year term, and three divisions. The Trial Division hears felony criminal cases and civil cases above the Municipal Court limit, and includes programs such as the Commerce Court business docket, the Complex Litigation Center and mass-tort programs. The Family Division handles divorce, custody, child support, protection-from-abuse orders and juvenile delinquency and dependency. The Orphans' Court Division handles estates, trusts, guardianships, and adoptions; the related administrative offices are the Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court. [2] The court's website names Nina Wright Padilla as President Judge (October 2026).
2 Municipal Court
Municipal Court has 27 law-trained judges led by its own President Judge, T. Francis Shields, who the court's website says was elected to the post in January 2024. Its Criminal Division hears misdemeanors with maximum sentences of up to five years, summary offenses and the preliminary hearings in felony cases, and it includes arraignment court where bail is set. Its Civil Division handles landlord and tenant cases, small claims up to $12,000 and code-enforcement cases up to $15,000. Its Traffic Division handles city vehicle-code matters such as speeding or driving with a broken headlight; the court's website says it does not handle parking tickets, driving-under-the-influence cases or red-light-camera tickets. The Traffic Division was created by Act 17 of 2013, which abolished the former Traffic Court and transferred its jurisdiction to Municipal Court. Municipal Court judges are elected to six-year terms. Within Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System the Municipal Court serves as a substitute for the magisterial district courts that serve the rest of the state. [2]
3 How a criminal case moves
After an arrest by the Police Department, a defendant is arraigned before a Municipal Court bail commissioner or judge, who sets bail or releases the person on conditions. For felonies, a preliminary hearing in Municipal Court tests whether the Commonwealth has enough evidence to proceed, after which the case moves to the Court of Common Pleas for arraignment, pretrial motions, trial and sentencing. The prosecutor is the District Attorney, and most defendants are represented by the Defender Association or by court-appointed counsel. Sentences of incarceration under two years are generally served in the city's jails run by the Department of Prisons, and supervision after release is provided by the Adult Probation and Parole Department.
4 Civil, landlord-tenant and small claims
Most tenants interact with the court through the Municipal Court Civil Division, where landlords file complaints for possession and unpaid rent. Pennsylvania procedure, the city's rental licensing rules and the city's eviction-diversion program shape these cases; see Eviction Diversion and Landlord-Tenant Court and Rental Licensing and Landlord-Tenant Law in Philadelphia. Either side may appeal a Municipal Court civil judgment to the Court of Common Pleas for a new hearing within the statutory period; the deadlines are short, so parties should read the notice on their judgment. Free help is described in Legal Aid and Public Interest Law. Larger civil cases, such as suits above the Municipal Court limit, begin in the Trial Division.
5 Appeals and oversight
Appeals from Common Pleas go to the Superior Court[3] (most criminal and civil matters), the Commonwealth Court (certain government-related matters), and potentially the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Judges are subject to the state Judicial Conduct Board; see First Judicial District for how they are selected. The courts' administration, probation function and budget are discussed in that article.
6 Public record and criticism
Court dockets are public through the state's web portal. Criticism of the courts, voiced by advocates, journalists and officials, has included slow case processing after the COVID-19 pandemic, bail practices, and the pace and outcomes of eviction cases; the courts have responded with programs such as pretrial reforms, diversion, and mediation initiatives. These are policy debates, and statements about particular judges' decisions are best checked against dockets and published opinions.
See also: First Judicial District, Philadelphia Sheriff's Office, Defender Association of Philadelphia, How to File a Complaint.
References
- Pennsylvania Constitution, Article V; 42 Pa.C.S. (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure), provisions on the Philadelphia Municipal Court.
- First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, "About" and division pages, courts.phila.gov; "Municipal Court" and "Common Pleas" pages, courts.phila.gov (viewed October 2026).
- Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System, pacourts.us.