How Pennsylvania DUI courts are organised
A DUI charge in Pennsylvania is prosecuted in the Court of Common Pleas (Magisterial District Court for preliminary stages) that serves the county or municipality where the stop happened, not where you live. The clerk's office in that courthouse controls your hearing dates, accepts motions and continuances, and takes payment of fines and court costs. Calendars, filing hours and remote-appearance rules differ from courthouse to courthouse, so confirm them with the clerk before your first date.
Pennsylvania DUI cases begin with preliminary proceedings before a magisterial district judge and are then adjudicated in the county Court of Common Pleas, which handles both misdemeanor and higher-tier DUI. Philadelphia uses the Municipal Court for many DUI trials. Appeals go to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
The state judiciary publishes the authoritative directory of courthouses, judges and calendars at pacourts.us. Use it to confirm the address and division for your case number; local listings age quickly.
Courthouse locations, hearing calendars, clerk contacts and self-help forms.
The separate licence action, which the criminal court does not decide.
What happens at each stage in Pennsylvania
A DUI case in Pennsylvania is heard in the Court of Common Pleas, and a separate licence action runs alongside the criminal case.
- 1Arrest, booking and the chemical test — Officers arrest for DUI under 75 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 3802 and request a breath, blood or urine test under Pennsylvania's implied-consent section, 75 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 1547. Refusing carries its own licence penalty, separate from the criminal charge.
- 2Licence action by the state agency — PennDOT imposes DUI suspensions under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3804 and § 1547 after a conviction or a test refusal. That action runs on its own timetable, independent of the criminal case.
- 3Arraignment in the Court of Common Pleas — The charge is read, a plea is entered and conditions of release are set in the Court of Common Pleas. Pennsylvania DUI cases begin with preliminary proceedings before a magisterial district judge and are then adjudicated in the county Court of Common Pleas, which handles both misdemeanor and higher-tier DUI.
- 4Pretrial motions and discovery — Defence counsel obtains the police report, test records and calibration or maintenance logs, and may move to suppress the stop or the test result. The Unified Judicial System offers PACFile for electronic filing in participating Courts of Common Pleas.
- 5Diversion or treatment disposition — Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition, at 75 Pa.C.S. § 3807, is the named pretrial diversion programme for eligible first-time DUI defendants.
- 6Plea or trial, then sentencing — A first DUI conviction carries a fine of $300–$5,000, jail exposure up to 6 months, a licence suspension of 1 year. Prior offenses within 10 years push the case into the enhanced-penalty range. A first general-impairment DUI may qualify for the ARD program instead of a conviction.
- 7Appeal — Magisterial district courts are not courts of record, and summary matters there are appealed de novo to the Court of Common Pleas.
- 8Reinstatement — Interlock is required for certain suspensions and restorations under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3805, through the Ignition Interlock Limited License programme.
Filing and case handling in Pennsylvania
- The Unified Judicial System offers PACFile for electronic filing in participating Courts of Common Pleas.
- Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition, at 75 Pa.C.S. § 3807, is the named pretrial diversion programme for eligible first-time DUI defendants.
- Magisterial district courts are not courts of record, and summary matters there are appealed de novo to the Court of Common Pleas.
- Preliminary arraignment is before a magisterial district judge; formal arraignment follows in the Court of Common Pleas.
Whatever the local practice, take your citation or case number to every call — clerks index by case, not by name — and get the payable amount for fines and court costs in writing before you pay.
Pennsylvania ZIP codes covered
These Pennsylvania ZIP-code pages carry the local court, filing and licensing detail for the area, and each one links back to this resource page.
Counties and cities using these Pennsylvania resources
Counties
Other Pennsylvania official resources
Frequently asked questions
- Which court handles a first DUI charge in Pennsylvania?
- First-offense DUI cases in Pennsylvania are heard in the Court of Common Pleas (Magisterial District Court for preliminary stages) for the county where the stop happened. The court clerk's office there sets the arraignment date and accepts filings.