Bucks County Magisterial District Courts

Bucks County is divided into 18 magisterial district courts , each serving a specific set of townships and boroughs. These are the local courts where most legal matters begin, from traffic citations and landlord tenant disputes to preliminary hearings in criminal cases. An elected Magisterial District Judge (MDJ) presides over each district and serves a six year term.

If you have a legal matter in Bucks County, the district court that handles your case usually depends on where the incident occurred or where the property is located , not on where you live. Civil money filings follow a broader venue rule, explained below.

What Do Magisterial District Courts Handle?

Magisterial district courts are courts of limited jurisdiction within the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System. They handle several types of matters:

• Traffic and nontraffic citations: speeding tickets, code violations, disorderly conduct, and other summary offenses
• Preliminary hearings: the initial stage of misdemeanor and felony cases, where the judge determines whether the Commonwealth has established a prima facie case sufficient to send the case to the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas in Doylestown
• Civil disputes up to $12,000: small claims and contract disputes
• Landlord tenant matters: eviction proceedings and security deposit disputes
• Arraignments: the formal reading of criminal charges and setting of bail

Magisterial District Judges also have the authority to perform marriage ceremonies, issue search warrants, and administer oaths.

For a detailed breakdown of MDJ court procedures, filing requirements, appeal deadlines, and how MDJ courts compare to the Court of Common Pleas, see our Magisterial District Courts: Small Claims, Landlord-Tenant & Summary Offenses guide.

How to Find Your District Court

For a citation or a criminal charge, your magisterial district court is determined by where the offense is alleged to have occurred, not by your home address. If you received a traffic ticket in Falls Township, for example, that case would be heard in District 07-1-10, regardless of where you live in the county.

Civil money filings work differently. Under Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J. 302, an action against an individual may be brought where the individual can be served, where the cause of action arose, or where the transaction or occurrence took place. A plaintiff often has more than one proper district to choose from, and the district where the defendant lives is frequently one of them. The rule sets separate venue standards for partnerships, corporations, unincorporated associations, insurance policy claims, and political subdivisions. If venue is wrong, the judge or the defendant may raise it any time before the hearing ends. If the judge finds venue is improper and there is a court of proper venue in Pennsylvania, the complaint is not dismissed and the judge may transfer it to that court.

An eviction is the exception. Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J. 301(b) takes a landlord action against a tenant for recovery of possession out of the civil action rules, and Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J. 502 controls instead. A landlord may file the action in and only in the magisterial district where the property is located. There is no choice of district, and where the tenant lives or where the lease was signed does not matter.

If you are unsure which district court handles your matter, you can also check the Pennsylvania court system’s online portal at ujsportal.pacourts.us or contact the Bucks County District Court Administration .

Legal and factual content on this page was last verified: Sep. 2026. If you are reading this significantly after that date, confirm key provisions with current statute text or contact our office.