Title 6 — JUSTICE COURTS
A justice court is a court held by a justice of the peace within the justice of the peace district for which the justice of the peace may be chosen. There are no particular terms of such court, but the same is always open for the transaction of business, according to the mode of proceeding prescribed for it.
The county court or board of county commissioners of every county may set off and establish, or modify the boundaries of, justice of the peace districts within the county. No more than six justice of the peace districts shall be set off or established or permitted to remain in existence within any county. At the time that the county court or board of county…
Except as provided in subsection (7) of this section, any justice court may become a court of record by: The passage of an ordinance by the governing body of the county in which the court is located; and The entry of an order by the Supreme Court acknowledging the filing of the declaration required under subsection (2) of this section. Before a justice co…
Any justice court that has become a court of record under ORS 51.025 may cease to operate as a court of record only if the governing body of the county in which the court is located files a declaration with the Supreme Court identifying the date on which the justice court will cease operation as a court of record. The date identified in the declaration may n…
Except as provided in ORS 3.136, any city situated wholly or in largest part within the boundaries of a justice of the peace district may enter into an agreement pursuant to ORS 190.010 with the county in which the justice of the peace district is located providing that the justice court for the district shall have all judicial jurisdiction, authority, power…
Any city may enter into an agreement pursuant to ORS 190.010 with the county in which a justice of the peace district is located for the provision of judicial services. A justice of the peace providing services to a city pursuant to such an agreement shall have all judicial jurisdiction, authority, powers, functions and duties of the municipal court of the c…
Except as otherwise provided in this section, in addition to the criminal jurisdiction of justice courts already conferred upon and exercised by them, justice courts have jurisdiction of all offenses committed or triable in their respective counties. The jurisdiction conveyed by this section is concurrent with any jurisdiction that may be exercised by a circ…
In any justice court that has not become a court of record under ORS 51.025, a defendant charged with a misdemeanor shall be notified immediately after entering a plea of not guilty of the right of the defendant to have the case transferred to the circuit court for the county in which the justice court is located. The election must be made within 10 days aft…
A justice or municipal court shall notify the Department of State Police when the justice or municipal court enters a judgment of conviction for a Class A misdemeanor. The department shall make rules establishing: Requirements for notification under this section. Procedures for entry of convictions described in subsection (1) of this section into the Law …
A justice court has jurisdiction, but not exclusive jurisdiction, of the following civil actions: For the recovery of money or damages only, when the amount claimed does not exceed $10,000. For the recovery of specific personal property, when the value of the property claimed and the damages for the detention do not exceed $10,000. For the recovery of any…
Except as provided in this section, a civil action subject to the jurisdiction of a justice court must be commenced in the county where one of the parties resides. If a defendant in a civil action subject to the jurisdiction of a justice court does not reside in this state, the action may be commenced in any justice district of this state. If all parties r…
In any proceeding conducted in open court in a justice court, any party may arrange for audio recording or reporting of the proceeding by stenographic or other means. The court may not prohibit recording or reporting of the proceeding under this section. A reporter providing stenographic reporting services under this section must be certified in shorthand r…
When entering a judgment in an action for a violation or a misdemeanor, a justice court shall, by including a notification in the judgment document or by another effective manner, notify the defendant that the defendant may request the name and contact information of the government official or entity upon which service of a notice of appeal is required under…
The case record of a justice court consists of the docket as described in subsection (2) of this section and the case file as described in subsection (3) of this section. The docket of a justice court is a record in which the clerk of the justice court shall enter, by its title, every action, suit or proceeding commenced in the court according to the date o…
The justice of the peace shall safely and securely keep all case records of the justice court described in ORS 51.115. The case records are public records for the purposes of ORS 192.311 to 192.478. When any justice court is abolished, the justice of the peace shall turn over the case records of that court to the clerk of the circuit court for the county in…
The county court or board of county commissioners of the county in which the justice of the peace has been elected or appointed: May provide for the office of the justice of the peace the office and courtroom and clerical assistance necessary to enable the justice of the peace to effectuate the prompt, efficient and dignified administration of justice. Sha…
Each justice of the peace district shall elect one justice of the peace, who shall hold office for six years and until a successor is elected and qualified.
The election at which a justice of the peace shall be elected shall be the general election or, if applicable, the election specified in ORS 249.088 next preceding the expiration of the term of the incumbent of the office.
As a qualification for the office: A justice of the peace must be a citizen of the United States and a resident of this state. A justice of the peace must be a resident of or have a principal office in the justice of the peace district in which the justice court is located. For purposes of this paragraph, a “principal office” is the primary location from w…
Each justice of the peace who is not a licensee of the Oregon State Bar shall attend or participate in a minimum of 30 hours of educational programs every two calendar years. The programs shall be those conducted and supervised or approved by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or designee. Each justice of the peace who is not a licensee of the Oregon St…
The term of office of a justice of the peace shall commence on the first Monday in January next following election. Before entering upon the duties of office, the person elected thereto shall qualify by filing with the county clerk of the county wherein the person is elected: The certificate of election of the person. An oath of office, by the person subsc…
If a vacancy occurs in the office of justice of the peace, the Governor immediately shall appoint some person possessing the qualifications for election to that office to fill the vacancy until the next general election and until such appointee’s successor is elected and qualified. The person appointed to fill the vacancy shall qualify in the same manner as …
A judge of the circuit court for a county, or any justice of the peace for a justice court district located within the county, may exercise the powers and duties of justice of the peace of any justice court in the county: At the request of the justice of the peace of the justice court; In the event of a vacancy in the office of the justice of the peace, un…
Except as provided in ORS 105.130, the justice of the peace shall collect, in advance except in criminal cases, and issue receipts for, the following fees: For the first appearance of the plaintiff, $90. For the first appearance of the defendant, $90. In the small claims department, for a plaintiff filing a claim, $37; and for a defendant requesting a hea…
Justices of the peace in each county shall report to the county treasurer once in each month the amount of all fines collected by them, from whom collected, and what the fine was for, and at the same time pay to the county treasurer in money the full amount of the fines collected. If the justices of the peace have collected no fines, they shall report that f…
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