About the FJD

The First Judicial District (FJD) of Pennsylvania is composed of the three courts which make up the Philadelphia County Court System: the Court of Common Pleas, Municipal Court and Traffic Court. The operations of the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania are controlled by an Administrative Governing Board which consists of the President Judges of the Court of Common Pleas, Municipal Court and Traffic Court, the Administrative Judges of the three divisions of the Court of Common Pleas, the Administrative Judge of Municipal Court, the Administrative Judge of Traffic Court, and the Administrator of the Pennsylvania Courts. The Chairperson of the Board is appointed annually by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

The COURT OF COMMON PLEAS is a ninety (90) judge court of general trial jurisdiction. The Court of Common Pleas is headed by the President Judge and is organized into three divisions based on case types. Each is led by an Administrative Judge. The Trial Division is responsible for most of criminal and civil cases; the Family Division is responsible for domestic relations matters (divorce, custody, child support and domestic violence) and juvenile cases (delinquency, dependency, and adoptions); and the Orphans' Division is responsible for cases involving estates, wills and trusts.

The twenty-two (22) judge MUNICIPAL COURT is the Philadelphia court of limited jurisdiction. The Municipal Court is led by the President Judge and Administrative Judge and is organized into Criminal and Civil Divisions. The Criminal Division is responsible for adult criminal cases carrying a maximum sentence of incarceration of five (5) years or less. Municipal Court has initial jurisdiction in processing every criminal arrest in Philadelphia and conducts preliminary hearings for all felony cases. The Civil Division shares jurisdiction with the Court of Common Pleas in civil cases where the amount in controversy is $10,000 or less, handles all landlord-tenant disputes, hears certain code enforcement cases, and is responsible for all real estate and school tax cases of $15,000 or less. Because a defendant does not have the right to a jury trial, all cases may be appealed to the Court of Common Pleas for a trial de novo.

The six judge TRAFFIC COURT is led by the President Judge and Administrative Judge and adjudicates all cases originating in Philadelphia involving moving traffic violations. Like Municipal Court, all adjudications in Traffic Court are directly appealable to the Court of Common Pleas.