Denton County Court

County Resources

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Denton, TX County Courthouse

The Denton, TX county courthouse is located at 1 Courthouse Drive, and it’s one of the newest administrative buildings, having been completed in 2021. The budget for the courthouse was around $45 million, and it took three years to complete.

This 96,000-square-foot building is home to several departments, including the budget office on the second floor, the county judge and commissioners on the third floor, and the county treasurer on the first floor. The courthouse is open to the public from Monday through Friday between 8 am to 5 pm.

Denton, TX County Court Clerk

Preserving the history of Denton, the County Court Clerk is responsible for maintaining and providing access to records and documents related to court cases and other records, such as property records. The office of the county clerk is currently headed by the Honorable Juli Luke.

The County Clerk preserves records including Property, Vital Statistics, Civil Court, Misdemeanor Court, Probate Court, and Juvenile Court. Interestingly, the office of the County Clerk also staffs and monitors the Collections Compliance Department and Law Library. This makes sense, considering payments to the County as well as the Law Library’s collections should be transparent and available to the public.

Denton, TX County District Court

District courts are responsible for hearing both civil and criminal cases, and in the case of Denton, TX, also hear matters related to family and child support. That’s because federal requirements mandate that child support cases must be expedited. In Denton County, child support court operates from the same building that all other district courts operate from at 1450 E McKinney Street, Suite 2203.

In addition, certain district courts hear family law cases as part of their docket, such as the 442nd District Court of Denton County. To date, there are a total of 11 district courts, which hear cases ranging from criminal cases to tax suits, debt cases, injury or damage claims, and more. These districts include the 16th District Court, 158th District Court, 211th District Court,362nd District Court, 367th District Court, 393rd District Court, 431st District Court, 442nd District Court, 462nd District Court, 467th District Court, 481st District Court.

Denton, TX County Magistrate Court

For residents who have been arrested and charged with a criminal offense in Denton County, they will have their case heard in the county’s Magistrate Court. The Magistrate Court in Denton County hears felony and Class and Class B misdemeanors. They hear cases ranging from assault and robbery to domestic violence and driving while intoxicated.
The main purpose of the Magistrate Court is to determine if there is enough evidence to support the charge and if so, set bail for the defendant. If the defendant cannot afford bail, they may be held in custody until their trial date or until they can post bail through a bail bond agency.

In some cases, individuals who have been arrested may be eligible for a court-appointed attorney. If you’re interested in getting an attorney, you can ask the magistrate court for assistance during your appearance. A fee might or might not be required to reimburse the court’s cost for obtaining an attorney on your behalf. The magistrate court is currently headed by Robin A. Ramsay, associate criminal judge.

Denton, TX County Civil Court

Civil cases can be frustrating to deal with, especially with the high cost of attorney’s fees and filing fees. That’s why Denton County encourages its residents to settle civil disputes outside of court through mediation and arbitration programs. However, if a resolution cannot be reached, the county’s Civil Court, known as Justice Court or “People’s Court,” will hear civil cases such as contract disputes, property rights issues, and personal injury claims.

There are currently six Justice of the Peace Precincts in Denton County. In addition to hearing civil cases up to $20,000, the JP Court also has jurisdiction over Class C misdemeanors, traffic offenses, and criminal cases only punishable by fines. It’s important to note that these civil courts can only award monetary damages and cannot enforce judgments, such as having a mechanic fix your car.

In addition to JP courts, district courts also hear certain civil cases. These include custody cases, divorce cases, tax suits, injury and damage cases, and other civil cases. Lastly, the County Court at Law 2 of Denton County also hears civil cases where damages are over $500 but don’t exceed $250,000.

Denton, TX County Felony Drug Court

Denton, TX is unique in that it has several different types of treatment programs for people who have been charged with drug or alcohol-related crimes. These include the First Offender Drug Program, or FODP, Denty County Drug Court, and the DWI Treatment Court Program among others.

The FODP treatment program is designed to improve the efficiency of the criminal courts by lowering its caseload. To do so, It diverts low risk first-time drug offenders to a court supervised program in hopes of increasing sobriety and recovery. Completing the program allows the County to save on expenses and potentially expunges a case from someone’s criminal record.

The Denton County Drug Court program is a bit different, gearing its efforts on treatment and supervision for offenders that abuse drugs but who are highly interested and motivated in recovery. Four phases along with random drug testing make up the bulk of this program.

There are also DWI treatment court programs for people with a past DWI conviction who are at high risk of re-offending. It also consists of supervision and drug/alcohol monitoring. Yet other programs that aren’t specifically for people with drug/alcohol use disorder but which could potentially provide further support include the Mental Health Treatment Court (MHTC) and Veterans Treatment Court Program (VTCP).