CHAPTER 1901: MUNICIPAL COURT

(A) There is hereby established a municipal court in each of the following municipal corporations:

Akron, Alliance, Ashland, Ashtabula, Athens, Avon Lake, Barberton, Bedford, Bellefontaine, Bellevue, Berea, Bowling Green, Bryan, Bucyrus, Cambridge, Campbell, Canton, Carrollton, Celina, Chardon, Chesapeake, Chillicothe, Cincinnati, Circleville, Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Columbus, Conneaut, Coshocton, Cuyahoga Falls, Dayton, Defiance, Delaware, East Cleveland, East Liverpool, Eaton, Elyria, Euclid, Fairborn, Fairfield, Findlay, Fostoria, Franklin, Fremont, Gallipolis, Garfield Heights, Georgetown, Girard, Greenville, Hamilton, Hillsboro, Huron, Ironton, Jackson, Kenton, Kettering, Lakewood, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lima, Logan, London, Lorain, Lyndhurst, Mansfield, Marietta, Marion, Marysville, Mason, Massillon, Maumee, Medina, Mentor, Miamisburg, Middletown, Millersburg, Mount Gilead, Mount Vernon, Napoleon, Newark, New Philadelphia, Newton Falls, Niles, Norwalk, Oakwood, Oberlin, Oregon, Painesville, Parma, Perrysburg, Port Clinton, Portsmouth, Ravenna, Rocky River, Sandusky, Shaker Heights, Shelby, Sidney, South Euclid, Springfield, Steubenville, Struthers, Sylvania, Tiffin, Toledo, Troy, Upper Sandusky, Urbana, Vandalia, Van Wert, Vermilion, Wadsworth, Wapakoneta, Warren, City of Washington in Fayette county, to be known as Washington Court House, Willoughby, Wilmington, Wooster, Xenia, Youngstown, and Zanesville.

(B) There is hereby established a municipal court within Clermont county in Batavia or in any other municipal corporation or unincorporated territory within Clermont county that is selected by the legislative authority of the Clermont county municipal court. The municipal court established by this division is a continuation of the municipal court previously established in Batavia by this section before the enactment of this division.

(C) There is hereby established a municipal court within Columbiana county in Lisbon or in any other municipal corporation or unincorporated territory within Columbiana county, except the municipal corporation of East Liverpool or Liverpool or St. Clair township, that is selected by the judges of the municipal court pursuant to division (I) of section 1901.021 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002; 06-17-2004; 01-01-2007; 01-02-2007

There is hereby created a housing division in the Cleveland municipal court and in the Toledo municipal court, and an environmental division in the Franklin county municipal court.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

(A) The municipal courts established by section 1901.01 of the Revised Code have jurisdiction within the corporate limits of their respective municipal corporations, or, for the Clermont county municipal court, within the municipal corporation or unincorporated territory in which it is established, and are courts of record. Each of the courts shall be styled ”.................................. municipal court,” inserting the name of the municipal corporation, except the following courts, which shall be styled as set forth below:

(1) The municipal court established in Chesapeake that shall be styled and known as the “Lawrence county municipal court”;

(2) The municipal court established in Cincinnati that shall be styled and known as the “Hamilton county municipal court”;

(3) The municipal court established in Ravenna that shall be styled and known as the “Portage county municipal court”;

(4) The municipal court established in Athens that shall be styled and known as the “Athens county municipal court”;

(5) The municipal court established in Columbus that shall be styled and known as the “Franklin county municipal court”;

(6) The municipal court established in London that shall be styled and known as the “Madison county municipal court”;

(7) The municipal court established in Newark that shall be styled and known as the “Licking county municipal court”;

(8) The municipal court established in Wooster that shall be styled and known as the “Wayne county municipal court”;

(9) The municipal court established in Wapakoneta that shall be styled and known as the “Auglaize county municipal court”;

(10) The municipal court established in Troy that shall be styled and known as the “Miami county municipal court”;

(11) The municipal court established in Bucyrus that shall be styled and known as the “Crawford county municipal court”;

(12) The municipal court established in Logan that shall be styled and known as the “Hocking county municipal court”;

(13) The municipal court established in Urbana that shall be styled and known as the “Champaign county municipal court”;

(14) The municipal court established in Jackson that shall be styled and known as the “Jackson county municipal court”;

(15) The municipal court established in Springfield that shall be styled and known as the “Clark county municipal court”;

(16) The municipal court established in Kenton that shall be styled and known as the “Hardin county municipal court”;

(17) The municipal court established within Clermont county in Batavia or in any other municipal corporation or unincorporated territory within Clermont county that is selected by the legislative authority of that court that shall be styled and known as the “Clermont county municipal court”;

(18) The municipal court established in Wilmington that, beginning July 1, 1992, shall be styled and known as the “Clinton county municipal court”;

(19) The municipal court established in Port Clinton that shall be styled and known as “the Ottawa county municipal court”;

(20) The municipal court established in Lancaster that, beginning January 2, 2000, shall be styled and known as the “Fairfield county municipal court”;

(21) The municipal court established within Columbiana county in Lisbon or in any other municipal corporation or unincorporated territory selected pursuant to division (I) of section 1901.021 of the Revised Code, that shall be styled and known as the “Columbiana county municipal court”;

(22) The municipal court established in Georgetown that, beginning February 9, 2003, shall be styled and known as the “Brown county municipal court”;

(23) The municipal court established in Mount Gilead that, beginning January 1, 2003, shall be styled and known as the “Morrow county municipal court”;

(24) The municipal court established in Greenville that, beginning January 1, 2005, shall be styled and known as the “Darke county municipal court”;

(25) The municipal court established in Millersburg that, beginning January 1, 2007, shall be styled and known as the “Holmes county municipal court.”

(26) The municipal court established in Carrollton that, beginning January 1, 2007, shall be styled and known as the “Carroll county municipal court.”

(B) In addition to the jurisdiction set forth in division (A) of this section, the municipal courts established by section 1901.01 of the Revised Code have jurisdiction as follows:

The Akron municipal court has jurisdiction within Bath, Richfield, and Springfield townships, and within the municipal corporations of Fairlawn, Lakemore, and Mogadore, in Summit county.

The Alliance municipal court has jurisdiction within Lexington, Marlboro, Paris, and Washington townships in Stark county.

The Ashland municipal court has jurisdiction within Ashland county.

The Ashtabula municipal court has jurisdiction within Ashtabula, Plymouth, and Saybrook townships in Ashtabula county.

The Athens county municipal court has jurisdiction within Athens county.

The Auglaize county municipal court has jurisdiction within Auglaize county.

The Avon Lake municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Avon and Sheffield in Lorain county.

The Barberton municipal court has jurisdiction within Coventry, Franklin, and Green townships, within all of Copley township except within the municipal corporation of Fairlawn, and within the municipal corporations of Clinton and Norton, in Summit county.

The Bedford municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Bedford Heights, Oakwood, Glenwillow, Solon, Bentleyville, Chagrin Falls, Moreland Hills, Orange, Warrensville Heights, North Randall, and Woodmere, and within Warrensville and Chagrin Falls townships, in Cuyahoga county.

The Bellefontaine municipal court has jurisdiction within Logan county.

The Bellevue municipal court has jurisdiction within Lyme and Sherman townships in Huron county and within York township in Sandusky county.

The Berea municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Strongsville, Middleburgh Heights, Brook Park, Westview, and Olmsted Falls, and within Olmsted township, in Cuyahoga county.

The Bowling Green municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Bairdstown, Bloomdale, Bradner, Custar, Cygnet, Grand Rapids, Haskins, Hoytville, Jerry City, Milton Center, North Baltimore, Pemberville, Portage, Rising Sun, Tontogany, Wayne, and Weston, and within Bloom, Center, Freedom, Grand Rapids, Henry, Jackson, Liberty, Middleton, Milton, Montgomery, Plain, Portage, Washington, Webster, and Weston townships in Wood county.

Beginning February 9, 2003, the Brown county municipal court has jurisdiction within Brown county.

The Bryan municipal court has jurisdiction within Williams county.

The Cambridge municipal court has jurisdiction within Guernsey county.

The Campbell municipal court has jurisdiction within Coitsville township in Mahoning county.

The Canton municipal court has jurisdiction within Canton, Lake, Nimishillen, Osnaburg, Pike, Plain, and Sandy townships in Stark county.

The Carroll county municipal court has jurisdiction within Carroll county.

The Celina municipal court has jurisdiction within Mercer county.

The Champaign county municipal court has jurisdiction within Champaign county.

The Chardon municipal court has jurisdiction within Geauga county.

The Chillicothe municipal court has jurisdiction within Ross county.

The Circleville municipal court has jurisdiction within Pickaway county.

The Clark county municipal court has jurisdiction within Clark county.

The Clermont county municipal court has jurisdiction within Clermont county.

The Cleveland municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Bratenahl in Cuyahoga county.

Beginning July 1, 1992, the Clinton county municipal court has jurisdiction within Clinton county.

The Columbiana county municipal court has jurisdiction within all of Columbiana county except within the municipal corporation of East Liverpool and except within Liverpool and St. Clair townships.

The Coshocton municipal court has jurisdiction within Coshocton county.

The Crawford county municipal court has jurisdiction within Crawford county.

The Cuyahoga Falls municipal court has jurisdiction within Boston, Hudson, Northfield Center, Sagamore Hills, and Twinsburg townships, and within the municipal corporations of Boston Heights, Hudson, Munroe Falls, Northfield, Peninsula, Reminderville, Silver Lake, Stow, Tallmadge, Twinsburg, and Macedonia, in Summit county.

Beginning January 1, 2005, the Darke county municipal court has jurisdiction within Darke county except within the municipal corporation of Bradford.

The Defiance municipal court has jurisdiction within Defiance county.

The Delaware municipal court has jurisdiction within Delaware county.

The East Liverpool municipal court has jurisdiction within Liverpool and St. Clair townships in Columbiana county.

The Eaton municipal court has jurisdiction within Preble county.

The Elyria municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Grafton, LaGrange, and North Ridgeville, and within Elyria, Carlisle, Eaton, Columbia, Grafton, and LaGrange townships, in Lorain county.

The Fairborn municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Beavercreek and within Bath and Beavercreek townships in Greene county.

Beginning January 2, 2000, the Fairfield county municipal court has jurisdiction within Fairfield county.

The Findlay municipal court has jurisdiction within all of Hancock county except within Washington township.

The Fostoria municipal court has jurisdiction within Loudon and Jackson townships in Seneca county, within Washington township in Hancock county, and within Perry township in Wood county.

The Franklin municipal court has jurisdiction within Franklin township in Warren county.

The Franklin county municipal court has jurisdiction within Franklin county.

The Fremont municipal court has jurisdiction within Ballville and Sandusky townships in Sandusky county.

The Gallipolis municipal court has jurisdiction within Gallia county.

The Garfield Heights municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Maple Heights, Walton Hills, Valley View, Cuyahoga Heights, Newburgh Heights, Independence, and Brecksville in Cuyahoga county.

The Girard municipal court has jurisdiction within Liberty, Vienna, and Hubbard townships in Trumbull county.

The Hamilton municipal court has jurisdiction within Ross and St. Clair townships in Butler county.

The Hamilton county municipal court has jurisdiction within Hamilton county.

The Hardin county municipal court has jurisdiction within Hardin county.

The Hillsboro municipal court has jurisdiction within all of Highland county except within Madison township.

The Hocking county municipal court has jurisdiction within Hocking county.

The Holmes county municipal court has jurisdiction within Holmes county.

The Huron municipal court has jurisdiction within all of Huron township in Erie county except within the municipal corporation of Sandusky.

The Ironton municipal court has jurisdiction within Aid, Decatur, Elizabeth, Hamilton, Lawrence, Upper, and Washington townships in Lawrence county.

The Jackson county municipal court has jurisdiction within Jackson county.

The Kettering municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Centerville and Moraine, and within Washington township, in Montgomery county.

Until January 2, 2000, the Lancaster municipal court has jurisdiction within Fairfield county.

The Lawrence county municipal court has jurisdiction within the townships of Fayette, Mason, Perry, Rome, Symmes, Union, and Windsor in Lawrence county.

The Lebanon municipal court has jurisdiction within Turtlecreek township in Warren county.

The Licking county municipal court has jurisdiction within Licking county.

The Lima municipal court has jurisdiction within Allen county.

The Lorain municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Sheffield Lake, and within Sheffield township, in Lorain county.

The Lyndhurst municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Mayfield Heights, Gates Mills, Mayfield, Highland Heights, and Richmond Heights in Cuyahoga county.

The Madison county municipal court has jurisdiction within Madison county.

The Mansfield municipal court has jurisdiction within Madison, Springfield, Sandusky, Franklin, Weller, Mifflin, Troy, Washington, Monroe, Perry, Jefferson, and Worthington townships, and within sections 35-36-31 and 32 of Butler township, in Richland county.

The Marietta municipal court has jurisdiction within Washington county.

The Marion municipal court has jurisdiction within Marion county.

The Marysville municipal court has jurisdiction within Union county.

The Mason municipal court has jurisdiction within Deerfield township in Warren county.

The Massillon municipal court has jurisdiction within Bethlehem, Perry, Sugar Creek, Tuscarawas, Lawrence, and Jackson townships in Stark county.

The Maumee municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Waterville and Whitehouse, within Waterville and Providence townships, and within those portions of Springfield, Monclova, and Swanton townships lying south of the northerly boundary line of the Ohio turnpike, in Lucas county.

The Medina municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Briarwood Beach, Brunswick, Chippewa-on-the-Lake, and Spencer and within the townships of Brunswick Hills, Chatham, Granger, Hinckley, Lafayette, Litchfield, Liverpool, Medina, Montville, Spencer, and York townships, in Medina county.

The Mentor municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Mentor-on-the-Lake in Lake county.

The Miami county municipal court has jurisdiction within Miami county and within the part of the municipal corporation of Bradford that is located in Darke county.

The Miamisburg municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Germantown and West Carrollton, and within German and Miami townships in Montgomery county.

The Middletown municipal court has jurisdiction within Madison township, and within all of Lemon township, except within the municipal corporation of Monroe, in Butler county.

Beginning January 1, 2003, the Morrow county municipal court has jurisdiction within Morrow county.

The Mount Vernon municipal court has jurisdiction within Knox county.

The Napoleon municipal court has jurisdiction within Henry county.

The New Philadelphia municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Dover, and within Auburn, Bucks, Fairfield, Goshen, Jefferson, Warren, York, Dover, Franklin, Lawrence, Sandy, Sugarcreek, and Wayne townships in Tuscarawas county.

The Newton Falls municipal court has jurisdiction within Bristol, Bloomfield, Lordstown, Newton, Braceville, Southington, Farmington, and Mesopotamia townships in Trumbull county.

The Niles municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of McDonald, and within Weathersfield township in Trumbull county.

The Norwalk municipal court has jurisdiction within all of Huron county except within the municipal corporation of Bellevue and except within Lyme and Sherman townships.

The Oberlin municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Amherst, Kipton, Rochester, South Amherst, and Wellington, and within Henrietta, Russia, Camden, Pittsfield, Brighton, Wellington, Penfield, Rochester, and Huntington townships, and within all of Amherst township except within the municipal corporation of Lorain, in Lorain county.

The Oregon municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporation of Harbor View, and within Jerusalem township, in Lucas county, and north within Maumee Bay and Lake Erie to the boundary line between Ohio and Michigan between the easterly boundary of the court and the easterly boundary of the Toledo municipal court.

The Ottawa county municipal court has jurisdiction within Ottawa county.

The Painesville municipal court has jurisdiction within Painesville, Perry, Leroy, Concord, and Madison townships in Lake county.

The Parma municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Parma Heights, Brooklyn, Linndale, North Royalton, Broadview Heights, Seven Hills, and Brooklyn Heights in Cuyahoga county.

The Perrysburg municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Luckey, Millbury, Northwood, Rossford, and Walbridge, and within Perrysburg, Lake, and Troy townships, in Wood county.

The Portage county municipal court has jurisdiction within Portage county.

The Portsmouth municipal court has jurisdiction within Scioto county.

The Rocky River municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Bay Village, Westlake, Fairview Park, and North Olmsted, and within Riveredge township, in Cuyahoga county.

The Sandusky municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Castalia and Bay View, and within Perkins township, in Erie county.

The Shaker Heights municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of University Heights, Beachwood, Pepper Pike, and Hunting Valley in Cuyahoga county.

The Shelby municipal court has jurisdiction within Sharon, Jackson, Cass, Plymouth, and Blooming Grove townships, and within all of Butler township except sections 35-36-31 and 32, in Richland county.

The Sidney municipal court has jurisdiction within Shelby county.

The Struthers municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Lowellville, New Middleton, and Poland, and within Poland and Springfield townships in Mahoning county.

The Sylvania municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Berkey and Holland, and within Sylvania, Richfield, Spencer, and Harding townships, and within those portions of Swanton, Monclova, and Springfield townships lying north of the northerly boundary line of the Ohio turnpike, in Lucas county.

The Tiffin municipal court has jurisdiction within Adams, Big Spring, Bloom, Clinton, Eden, Hopewell, Liberty, Pleasant, Reed, Scipio, Seneca, Thompson, and Venice townships in Seneca county.

The Toledo municipal court has jurisdiction within Washington township, and within the municipal corporation of Ottawa Hills, in Lucas county.

The Upper Sandusky municipal court has jurisdiction within Wyandot county.

The Vandalia municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Clayton, Englewood, and Union, and within Butler, Harrison, and Randolph townships, in Montgomery county.

The Van Wert municipal court has jurisdiction within Van Wert county.

The Vermilion municipal court has jurisdiction within the townships of Vermilion and Florence in Erie county and within all of Brownhelm township except within the municipal corporation of Lorain, in Lorain county.

The Wadsworth municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Gloria Glens Park, Lodi, Seville, and Westfield Center, and within Guilford, Harrisville, Homer, Sharon, Wadsworth, and Westfield townships in Medina county.

The Warren municipal court has jurisdiction within Warren and Champion townships, and within all of Howland township except within the municipal corporation of Niles, in Trumbull county.

The Washington Court House municipal court has jurisdiction within Fayette county.

The Wayne county municipal court has jurisdiction within Wayne county.

The Willoughby municipal court has jurisdiction within the municipal corporations of Eastlake, Wickliffe, Willowick, Willoughby Hills, Kirtland, Kirtland Hills, Waite Hill, Timberlake, and Lakeline, and within Kirtland township, in Lake county.

Through June 30, 1992, the Wilmington municipal court has jurisdiction within Clinton county.

The Xenia municipal court has jurisdiction within Caesarcreek, Cedarville, Jefferson, Miami, New Jasper, Ross, Silvercreek, Spring Valley, Sugarcreek, and Xenia townships in Greene county.

(C) As used in this section:

(1) “Within a township” includes all land, including, but not limited to, any part of any municipal corporation, that is physically located within the territorial boundaries of that township, whether or not that land or municipal corporation is governmentally a part of the township.

(2) “Within a municipal corporation” includes all land within the territorial boundaries of the municipal corporation and any townships that are coextensive with the municipal corporation.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002; 06-17-2004; 01-01-2007; 01-02-2007

(A) The judge or judges of any municipal court established under division (A) of section 1901.01 of the Revised Code having territorial jurisdiction outside the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located may sit outside the corporate limits of the municipal corporation within the area of its territorial jurisdiction.

(B) Two or more of the judges of the Hamilton county municipal court shall be assigned by the presiding judge of the court to sit outside the municipal corporation of Cincinnati.

(C) Two of the judges of the Portage county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporation of Ravenna, and one of the judges shall sit within the municipal corporation of Kent. The judges may sit in other incorporated areas of Portage county.

(D) One of the judges of the Wayne county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporation of Wooster, and one shall sit within the municipal corporation of Orrville. Both judges may sit in other incorporated areas of Wayne county.

(E) The judge of the Auglaize county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporations of Wapakoneta and St. Marys and may sit in other incorporated areas in Auglaize county.

(F) At least one of the judges of the Miami county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporations of Troy, Piqua, and Tipp City, and the judges may sit in other incorporated areas of Miami county.

(G) The judge of the Crawford county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporations of Bucyrus and Galion and may sit in other incorporated areas in Crawford county.

(H) The judge of the Jackson county municipal court shall sit within the municipal corporations of Jackson and Wellston and may sit in other incorporated areas in Jackson county.

(I) Each judge of the Columbiana county municipal court may sit within the municipal corporation of Lisbon, Salem, or East Palestine until the judges jointly select a central location within the territorial jurisdiction of the court. When the judges select a central location, the judges shall sit at that location.

(J) In any municipal court, other than the Hamilton county municipal court, that has more than one judge, the decision for one or more judges to sit outside the corporate limits of the municipal corporation shall be made by rule of the court as provided in division (C) of sections 1901.14 and 1901.16 of the Revised Code.

(K) The assignment of a judge to sit in a municipal corporation other than that in which the court is located does not affect the jurisdiction of the mayor except as provided in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code.

(L) The judges of the Clermont county municipal court may sit in any municipal corporation or unincorporated territory within Clermont county.

Effective Date: 01-01-2002

In addition to the territorial jurisdiction conferred by section 1901.02 of the Revised Code, all municipal courts shall also have jurisdiction within the limits of the county or counties in which their territory is situated, except within the territorial jurisdiction of another municipal court, to appoint trustees to receive and distribute earnings in accordance with section 2329.70 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 11-06-1959

In addition to the territorial jurisdiction conferred by section 1901.02 of the Revised Code, the municipal courts of Ashtabula, Avon Lake, Cleveland, Conneaut, Euclid, Huron, Lakewood, Lorain, Mentor, Oregon, Ottawa county, Painesville, Rocky River, Sandusky, Toledo, Vermilion, and Willoughby have jurisdiction within their respective counties northerly beyond the south shore of Lake Erie to the international boundary line between the United States and Canada, between the easterly and westerly boundary lines of the adjacent municipal or county courts. The municipal courts that are given jurisdiction in Lake Erie by this section have concurrent jurisdiction in Lake Erie with any adjacent county or municipal courts that borders on Lake Erie.

Effective Date: 02-04-1994

(A) The board of county commissioners of Hamilton county shall pay all of the costs of operation of the Hamilton county municipal court. Subject to sections 3375.50, 3375.53, 4511.19, 4511.193, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, the county shall receive all of the costs, fees, and other moneys, except fines collected for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code, that are received by the Hamilton county municipal court and shall receive fifty per cent of all of the fines for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code that are received by the court.

(B) The board of county commissioners of Lawrence county shall pay all of the costs of operation of the Lawrence county municipal court. Subject to sections 3375.50, 3375.53, 4511.19, 4511.193, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, the county shall receive all of the costs, fees, and other moneys, except fines collected for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code, that are received by the Lawrence county municipal court and shall receive fifty per cent of all of the fines for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code that are received by the court.

(C) The board of county commissioners of Ottawa county shall pay all of the costs of operation of the Ottawa county municipal court. Subject to sections 3375.50, 3375.53, 4511.19, 4511.193, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, the county shall receive all of the costs, fees, and other moneys, except fines collected for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code, that are received by the Ottawa county municipal court and shall receive fifty per cent of all of the fines for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code that are received by the court.

(D) The board of county commissioners of a county in which a county-operated municipal court is located shall pay all of the costs of operation of the municipal court. The county in which a county-operated municipal court that is not subject to division (A), (B), or (C) of this section is located shall receive all of the costs, fees, and other moneys, except fines collected for violations of municipal ordinances and for violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code and except as provided in sections 3375.50, 3375.53, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and in any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, that are received by the court.

Effective Date: 01-01-2004

The housing or environmental division of a municipal court created pursuant to section 1901.011 of the Revised Code has the same territorial jurisdiction as the municipal court of which it is a part, but shall be styled and known as the “housing division of the . . . . . . . . . . . .,” or the “environmental division of the . . . . . . . . . . . .,” inserting the name of the municipal court.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

(A) The current operating costs of a municipal court, other than a county-operated municipal court, that has territorial jurisdiction under section 1901.02 or 1901.182 of the Revised Code that extends beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which the court is located shall be apportioned pursuant to this section among all of the municipal corporations and townships that are within the territory of the court. Each municipal corporation and each township within the territory of the municipal court shall be assigned a proportionate share of the current operating costs of the municipal court that is equal to the percentage of the total criminal and civil caseload of the municipal court that arose in that municipal corporation or township. Each municipal corporation and each township then shall be liable for its assigned proportionate share of the current operating costs of the court, subject to division (B) of this section.

For purposes of this section, the criminal and civil caseload that arose in a municipal corporation or township is the total number of criminal cases filed in the municipal court during the preceding calendar year that arose out of offenses that occurred in the municipal corporation or township and the total number of civil cases filed in the municipal court during the preceding calendar year in which the address of the majority of the defendants that are designated in the caption of the case and that have addresses within municipal corporations or townships within the territory of the court is within the municipal corporation or township or, if there is no majority of such defendants, in which the address of the first such defendant is within the municipal corporation or township.

(B) A municipal corporation or township within the territory of a municipal court is not required to pay that part of its proportionate share of the current operating costs of the court, as determined in accordance with division (A) of this section, that exceeds the total amount of costs, fees, fines, bail, or other moneys that was disbursed by the clerk of the court under division (F) of section 1901.31 of the Revised Code, to the municipal corporation or township during the period for which its proportionate share of the current operating costs was determined. The municipal corporation in which the court is located is liable, in addition to its proportionate share, for any part of the proportionate share of a municipal corporation or township that the municipal corporation or township is not required to pay under this division.

(C) The auditors or chief fiscal officers of each of the municipal corporations and townships within the territory of a municipal court for which the current operating costs are apportioned under this section shall meet not less than once each six months at the office of the auditor or chief fiscal officer of the municipal corporation in which the court is located to determine the proportionate share due from each municipal corporation and each township, to determine whether any municipal corporation or township is not required to pay any part of its proportionate share under division (B) of this section, and to adjust accounts. The meetings shall be held at the direction of the auditor or chief fiscal officer of the municipal corporation in which the court is located, and the auditor or chief fiscal officer shall preside at the meetings. The proportionate share of each of the municipal corporations and townships, as reduced or increased in accordance with division (B) of this section, is payable from the general fund of the municipal corporation or township or from any other fund designated or funds appropriated for the purpose of paying the particular municipal corporation’s or township’s proportionate share of the current operating costs of the court.

The court of common pleas of the county in which a municipal court for which the current operating costs are apportioned under this section is located has jurisdiction over any civil action that is commenced to determine the current operating costs of the court, the proportionate share of the current operating costs to be paid by a particular municipal corporation or township within the territory of the court, or whether a municipal corporation or township is not required to pay any part of its proportionate share under division (B) of this section.

(D) For purposes of this section:

(1) “Operating costs” means the figure that is derived by subtracting the total of all costs that are collected and paid to the city treasury by the clerk of the municipal court pursuant to division (F) of section 1901.31 of the Revised Code and all interest received and paid to the city treasury in relation to the costs pursuant to division (G) of section 1901.31 of the Revised Code from the total of the amounts payable from the city treasury for the operation of the court pursuant to sections 1901.10, 1901.11, 1901.111 , 1901.12, 1901.31, 1901.311 , 1901.312 , 1901.32, 1901.33, 1901.331 , 1901.36, 1901.37, and 1901.38 of the Revised Code, other than any amounts payable from the city treasury for the operation of the court involving construction, capital improvements, rent, or the provision of heat and light.

(2) “Township” means a township that has adopted a limited home rule government pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code.

(3) “Criminal caseload” when used in regard to a township means cases arising from a violation of a township resolution for which a fine is imposed under Chapter 504. of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 09-20-1999

In addition to the territorial jurisdiction conferred by section 1901.02 of the Revised Code, the municipal courts established in Athens, Batavia, East Liverpool, Gallipolis, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Ironton, Chesapeake, Marietta, Portsmouth, and Steubenville and the municipal court established within Columbiana county that is described in division (C) of section 1901.01 of the Revised Code have jurisdiction beyond the north or northwest shore of the Ohio river extending to the opposite shore line, between the extended boundary lines of any adjacent municipal courts or adjacent county courts. Each of the municipal courts that is given jurisdiction on the Ohio river by this section has concurrent jurisdiction on the Ohio river with any adjacent municipal courts or adjacent county courts that border on that river and with any court of Kentucky or of West Virginia that borders on the Ohio river and that has jurisdiction on the Ohio river under the law of Kentucky or the law of West Virginia, whichever is applicable, or under federal law.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002

(A) “Territory” means the geographical areas within which municipal courts have jurisdiction as provided in sections 1901.01 and 1901.02 of the Revised Code.

(B) “Legislative authority” means the legislative authority of the municipal corporation in which a municipal court, other than a county-operated municipal court, is located, and means the respective board of county commissioners of the county in which a county-operated municipal court is located.

(C) “Chief executive” means the chief executive of the municipal corporation in which a municipal court, other than a county-operated municipal court, is located, and means the respective chairman of the board of county commissioners of the county in which a county-operated municipal court is located.

(D) “City treasury” means the treasury of the municipal corporation in which a municipal court, other than a county-operated municipal court, is located.

(E) “City treasurer” means the treasurer of the municipal corporation in which a municipal court, other than a county-operated municipal court, is located.

(F) “County-operated municipal court” means the Auglaize county, Brown county, Carroll county, Clermont county, Columbiana county, Crawford county, Darke county, Hamilton county, Hocking county, Holmes county, Jackson county, Lawrence county, Madison county, Miami county, Morrow county, Ottawa county, Portage county, or Wayne county municipal court.

(G) “A municipal corporation in which a municipal court is located” includes each municipal corporation named in section 1901.01 of the Revised Code, but does not include one in which a judge sits pursuant to section 1901.021 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002; 06-17-2004; 01-01-2007; 01-02-2007

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, “municipal court” includes the housing or environmental division of the municipal court, and “judge” includes the judge of the housing or environmental division of the municipal court, as created by section 1901.011 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

Upon the institution of a municipal court other than the Brown county municipal court or the Morrow county municipal court, the jurisdiction of the mayor in all civil and criminal causes terminates within the municipal corporation in which the municipal court is located. The institution of the Brown county municipal court or the Morrow county municipal court does not terminate or affect the jurisdiction of the mayor of Georgetown or the mayor of Mount Gilead, respectively, in any civil or criminal cause. Upon the institution of either court, the mayor of Georgetown and the mayor of Mount Gilead retain jurisdiction in causes as described in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code. Those mayors shall exercise that jurisdiction concurrently with the municipal court. Upon the institution of a municipal court, all mayors of municipal corporations within the territory other than the municipal corporation in which the court is located may retain any jurisdiction that is now provided in all criminal causes involving violation of ordinances of their respective municipal corporations and in all criminal causes involving moving traffic violations occurring on state highways located within their respective municipal corporations, to be exercised concurrently with the municipal court.

Upon the institution of a municipal court, the jurisdiction of county courts in all civil and criminal causes terminates in any township or municipal corporation that is entirely within the territory.

Upon the institution of a municipal court, all causes, judgments, executions, and proceedings then pending in courts of mayors and county courts within the territory as to which their jurisdiction is terminated by this section shall proceed in the municipal court as if originally instituted in the municipal court. The parties may make any amendments to their pleadings that are required to conform to the rules of the municipal court.

In all cases over which the municipal court is given jurisdiction and for which the jurisdiction of county courts and the courts of mayors is terminated by this section upon the institution of the municipal court, the pleadings, orders, entries, dockets, bonds, papers, records, books, exhibits, files, moneys, property, and persons that belong to, are in the possession of, or are subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of mayors or county courts or any officer of either court and that are in any municipal corporation or township which is entirely within the territory of a municipal court shall be transferred by their custodian to the municipal court. If a part of any township that was within the jurisdiction of a county court is included within the territory of a municipal court, all pleadings, orders, entries, dockets, bonds, papers, records, books, exhibits, files, moneys, property, and persons that belong to, are in the possession of, or are subject to the jurisdiction of the county court or any officer of the county court and that pertain to causes, judgments, executions, and proceedings then pending in the county court and arising from the court’s jurisdiction in that part of the township within the territory of the municipal court shall be transferred by their custodian to the municipal court.

The termination of a municipal court reinstates the jurisdiction of the mayor of the municipal corporation in which the terminated municipal court was located, if the jurisdiction of the mayor was terminated by this section.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002

(A) Except as authorized by or provided in division (B) of section 1901.181 of the Revised Code, all cases filed after the institution of a housing or environmental division of a municipal court and over which the division has jurisdiction shall be assigned by the administrative judge of the municipal court to the judge of the division. Any cases pending in the municipal court at the time the division is instituted and over which the division has jurisdiction shall be reassigned to the judge of the division, if the administrative judge determines that reassignment will not delay the trial of the case and that reassignment is in the best interests of the parties.

(B) The Hamilton county municipal court may refer a case of the type described in division (B)(3) of section 2301.03 of the Revised Code to the drug court judge of the court of common pleas of Hamilton county pursuant to that division.

Effective Date: 07-01-1997

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

(A) The housing division of the Cleveland municipal court shall consist of one full-time judge. The judge of the housing division shall be elected specifically as the housing division judge and shall be the judge of the Cleveland municipal court whose term began January 2, 1978, and his successors.

(B) The housing division of the Toledo municipal court shall consist of one full-time judge. The judge of the housing division shall be elected specifically as the housing division judge and shall be the judge of the Toledo municipal court whose term begins January 1, 1988, and his successors.

(C) The environmental division of the Franklin county municipal court shall consist of one full-time judge. The judge of the environmental division shall be elected specifically as the environmental division judge and shall be the judge of the Franklin county municipal court whose term begins January 8, 1992, and his successors.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

A municipal judge during his term of office shall be a qualified elector and a resident of the territory of the court to which he is elected or appointed. A municipal judge shall have been admitted to the practice of law in this state and shall have been, for a total of at least six years preceding his appointment or the commencement of his term, engaged in the practice of law in this state or served as a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the United States, or both.

Except as provided in section 1901.08 of the Revised Code, the first election of any newly created office of a municipal judge shall be held at the next regular municipal election occurring not less than one hundred days after the creation of the office. The institution of a new municipal court shall take place on the first day of January next after the first election for the court.

Effective Date: 03-19-1987

(A) All municipal court judges shall be elected on the nonpartisan ballot for terms of six years. In a municipal court in which only one judge is to be elected in any one year, that judge’s term commences on the first day of January after the election. In a municipal court in which two or more judges are to be elected in any one year, their terms commence on successive days beginning the first day of January, following the election, unless otherwise provided by section 1901.08 of the Revised Code.

(B) All candidates for municipal court judge may be nominated either by nominating petition or by primary election, except that if the jurisdiction of a municipal court extends only to the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which the court is located and that municipal corporation operates under a charter, all candidates shall be nominated in the same manner provided in the charter for the office of municipal court judge or, if no specific provisions are made in the charter for the office of municipal court judge, in the same manner as the charter prescribes for the nomination and election of the legislative authority of the municipal corporation.

If the jurisdiction of a municipal court extends beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located or if the jurisdiction of the court does not extend beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located and no charter provisions apply, all candidates for party nomination to the office of municipal court judge shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, or if the primary election is a presidential primary election, not later than four p.m. of the sixtieth day before the day of the presidential primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 of the Revised Code. The petition shall conform to the requirements provided for those petitions of candidacy contained in section 3513.05 of the Revised Code, except that the petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. If no valid declaration of candidacy is filed for nomination as a candidate of a political party for election to the office of municipal court judge, or if the number of persons filing the declarations of candidacy for nominations as candidates of one political party for election to the office does not exceed the number of candidates that that party is entitled to nominate as its candidates for election to the office, no primary election shall be held for the purpose of nominating candidates of that party for election to the office, and the candidates shall be issued certificates of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

If the jurisdiction of a municipal court extends beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located or if the jurisdiction of the court does not extend beyond the corporate limits of the municipal corporation in which it is located and no charter provisions apply, nonpartisan candidates for the office of municipal court judge shall file nominating petitions not later than four p.m. of the day before the day of the primary election in the form prescribed by section 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The petition shall conform to the requirements provided for those petitions of candidacy contained in section 3513.257 of the Revised Code, except that the petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court.

The nominating petition or declaration of candidacy for a municipal court judge shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, the candidacies of the judges nominated shall be submitted to the electors of the territory on a nonpartisan, judicial ballot in the same manner as provided for judges of the court of common pleas, except that, in a municipal corporation operating under a charter, all candidates for municipal court judge shall be elected in conformity with the charter if provisions are made in the charter for the election of municipal court judges.

(C) Notwithstanding divisions (A) and (B) of this section, in the following municipal courts, the judges shall be nominated and elected as follows:

(1) In the Cleveland municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Cleveland for filing petitions of candidates for municipal offices. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(2) In the Toledo municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Toledo for filing nominating petitions for city council. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(3) In the Akron municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. It shall be in statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Akron for filing nominating petitions of candidates for municipal offices. Each elector shall have the right to sign petitions for as many candidates as are to be elected, but no more. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(4) In the Hamilton county municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court, which petitions shall be signed, verified, and filed in the manner and within the time required by law for nominating petitions for members of council of the city of Cincinnati. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court at the regular municipal election and in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(5) In the Franklin county municipal court, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petition shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court. The petition shall be in the statutory form and shall be filed in the manner and within the time prescribed by the charter of the city of Columbus for filing petitions of candidates for municipal offices. The judges shall be elected by the electors of the territory of the court in the manner provided by law for the election of judges of the court of common pleas.

(6) In the Auglaize, Brown, Carroll, Clermont, Crawford, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Madison, Miami, Morrow, Portage, and Wayne county municipal courts, the judges shall be nominated only by petition. The petitions shall be signed by at least fifty electors of the territory of the court and shall conform to the provisions of this section.

(D) As used in this section, as to an election for either a full or an unexpired term, “the territory within the jurisdiction of the court” means that territory as it will be on the first day of January after the election.

Effective Date: 12-29-1993; 06-17-2004; 05-02-2006; 01-02-2007

The number of, and the time for election of, judges of the following municipal courts and the beginning of their terms shall be as follows:

In the Akron municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1951, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1953, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1967, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Alliance municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Ashland municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Ashtabula municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Athens county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1967.

In the Auglaize county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Avon Lake municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Barberton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1969, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Bedford municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1979.

In the Bellefontaine municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1993.

In the Bellevue municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Berea municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005.

In the Bowling Green municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1983.

In the Brown county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005. Beginning February 9, 2003, the part-time judge of the Brown county county court that existed prior to that date whose term commenced on January 2, 2001, shall serve as the full-time judge of the Brown county municipal court until December 31, 2005.

In the Bryan municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1965.

In the Cambridge municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Campbell municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Canton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1969, and two full-time judges shall be elected in 1977.

In the Carroll county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2009. Beginning January 1, 2007, the judge elected in 2006 to the part-time judgeship of the Carroll county county court that existed prior to that date shall serve as the full-time judge of the Carroll county municipal court until December 31, 2009.

In the Celina municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Champaign county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2001.

In the Chardon municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Chillicothe municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Circleville municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Clark county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1989, and two full-time judges shall be elected in 1991. The full-time judges of the Springfield municipal court who were elected in 1983 and 1985 shall serve as the judges of the Clark county municipal court from January 1, 1988, until the end of their respective terms.

In the Clermont county municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1991, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1999.

In the Cleveland municipal court, six full-time judges shall be elected in 1975, three full-time judges shall be elected in 1953, and four full-time judges shall be elected in 1955.

In the Cleveland Heights municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Clinton county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1997. The full-time judge of the Wilmington municipal court who was elected in 1991 shall serve as the judge of the Clinton county municipal court from July 1, 1992, until the end of that judge’s term on December 31, 1997.

In the Columbiana county municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 2001.

In the Conneaut municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Coshocton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Crawford county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1967. Effective December 31, 2008, the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court shall cease to exist; however, the judges of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court who were elected pursuant to this section in 2003 and 2007 for terms beginning on January 1, 2004, and January 1, 2008, respectively, shall serve as full-time judges of the Stow municipal court until December 31, 2009, and December 31, 2013, respectively.

In the Darke county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005. Beginning January 1, 2005, the part-time judge of the Darke county county court that existed prior to that date whose term began on January 1, 2001, shall serve as the full-time judge of the Darke county municipal court until December 31, 2005.

In the Dayton municipal court, three full-time judges shall be elected in 1987, their terms to commence on successive days beginning on the first day of January next after their election, and two full-time judges shall be elected in 1955, their terms to commence on successive days beginning on the second day of January next after their election.

In the Defiance municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Delaware municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 2007.

In the East Cleveland municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the East Liverpool municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Eaton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1973.

In the Elyria municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1955, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1973.

In the Erie county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2007.

In the Euclid municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Fairborn municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Fairfield county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2003, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005.

In the Fairfield municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1989.

In the Findlay municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1955, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1993.

In the Fostoria municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Franklin municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Franklin county municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1969, three full-time judges shall be elected in 1971, seven full-time judges shall be elected in 1967, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1991, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1997.

In the Fremont municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Gallipolis municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1981.

In the Garfield Heights municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1981.

In the Girard municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Hamilton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Hamilton county municipal court, five full-time judges shall be elected in 1967, five full-time judges shall be elected in 1971, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1981, and two full-time judges shall be elected in 1983. All terms of judges of the Hamilton county municipal court shall commence on the first day of January next after their election, except that the terms of the additional judges to be elected in 1981 shall commence on January 2, 1982, and January 3, 1982, and that the terms of the additional judges to be elected in 1983 shall commence on January 4, 1984, and January 5, 1984.

In the Hardin county municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1989.

In the Hillsboro municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Hocking county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Holmes county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2007. Beginning January 1, 2007, the part-time judge of the Holmes county county court that existed prior to that date whose term commenced on January 1, 2007, shall serve as the full-time judge of the Holmes county municipal court until December 31, 2007.

In the Huron municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1967.

In the Ironton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Jackson county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2001. On and after March 31, 1997, the part-time judge of the Jackson county municipal court who was elected in 1995 shall serve as a full-time judge of the court until the end of that judge’s term on December 31, 2001.

In the Kettering municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Lakewood municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1955.

In the Lancaster municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1979. Beginning January 2, 2000, the full-time judges of the Lancaster municipal court who were elected in 1997 and 1999 shall serve as judges of the Fairfield county municipal court until the end of those judges’ terms.

In the Lawrence county municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1981.

In the Lebanon municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1955.

In the Licking county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Lima municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1967.

In the Lorain municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1973.

In the Lyndhurst municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Madison county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1981.

In the Mansfield municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1969.

In the Marietta municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Marion municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Marysville municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2011. On and after January 18, 2007, the part-time judge of the Marysville municipal court who was elected in 2005 shall serve as a full-time judge of the court until the end of that judge’s term on December 31, 2011.

In the Mason municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1965.

In the Massillon municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Maumee municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Medina municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Mentor municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Miami county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1979.

In the Miamisburg municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Middletown municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Morrow county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005. Beginning January 1, 2003, the part-time judge of the Morrow county county court that existed prior to that date shall serve as the full-time judge of the Morrow county municipal court until December 31, 2005.

In the Mount Vernon municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Napoleon municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2005.

In the New Philadelphia municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Newton Falls municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Niles municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Norwalk municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975.

In the Oakwood municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Oberlin municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1989.

In the Oregon municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Ottawa county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1995, and the full-time judge of the Port Clinton municipal court who is elected in 1989 shall serve as the judge of the Ottawa county municipal court from February 4, 1994, until the end of that judge’s term.

In the Painesville municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Parma municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1967, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Perrysburg municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Portage county municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1979, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Port Clinton municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953. The full-time judge of the Port Clinton municipal court who is elected in 1989 shall serve as the judge of the Ottawa county municipal court from February 4, 1994, until the end of that judge’s term.

In the Portsmouth municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1985.

In the Rocky River municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Sandusky municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Shaker Heights municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Shelby municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Sidney municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1995.

In the South Euclid municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1999. The part-time judge elected in 1993, whose term commenced on January 1, 1994, shall serve until December 31, 1999, and the office of that judge is abolished on January 1, 2000.

In the Springfield municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1985, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1983, all of whom shall serve as the judges of the Springfield municipal court through December 31, 1987, and as the judges of the Clark county municipal court from January 1, 1988, until the end of their respective terms.

In the Steubenville municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Stow municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2009, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 2013. Beginning January 1, 2009, the judge of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court that existed prior to that date whose term commenced on January 1, 2008, shall serve as a full-time judge of the Stow municipal court until December 31, 2013. Beginning January 1, 2009, the judge of the Cuyahoga Falls municipal court that existed prior to that date whose term commenced on January 1, 2004, shall serve as a full-time judge of the Stow municipal court until December 31, 2009.

In the Struthers municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Sylvania municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1963.

In the Tiffin municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

In the Toledo municipal court, two full-time judges shall be elected in 1971, four full-time judges shall be elected in 1975, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1973.

In the Upper Sandusky municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 2011. The part-time judge elected in 2005, whose term commenced on January 1, 2006, shall serve as a full-time judge on and after January 1, 2008, until the expiration of that judge’s term on December 31, 2011, and the office of that judge is abolished on January 1, 2012.

In the Vandalia municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1959.

In the Van Wert municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1957.

In the Vermilion municipal court, one part-time judge shall be elected in 1965.

In the Wadsworth municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1981.

In the Warren municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1971.

In the Washington Court House municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1999. The part-time judge elected in 1993, whose term commenced on January 1, 1994, shall serve until December 31, 1999, and the office of that judge is abolished on January 1, 2000.

In the Wayne county municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1975, and one full-time judge shall be elected in 1979.

In the Willoughby municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951.

In the Wilmington municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1991, who shall serve as the judge of the Wilmington municipal court through June 30, 1992, and as the judge of the Clinton county municipal court from July 1, 1992, until the end of that judge’s term on December 31, 1997.

In the Xenia municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1977.

In the Youngstown municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1951, and two full-time judges shall be elected in 1953.

In the Zanesville municipal court, one full-time judge shall be elected in 1953.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002; 06-17-2004; 05-18-2005; 01-01-2007; 01-01-2007; 2007 HB155 12-21-2007

(A) In a municipal court having only one judge, that judge shall be designated as both the presiding judge and the administrative judge.

(B) In a municipal court having two or more judges, the presiding and administrative judge shall be elected or designated as provided in the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio.

Effective Date: 08-03-1999

(A)(1)(a) The judges of the municipal court and officers of the court shall take an oath of office as provided in section 3.23 of the Revised Code. The office of judge of the municipal court is subject to forfeiture, and the judge may be removed from office, for the causes and by the procedure provided in sections 3.07 to 3.10 of the Revised Code. A vacancy in the office of judge exists upon the death, resignation, forfeiture, removal from office, or absence from official duties for a period of six consecutive months, as determined under this section, of the judge and also by reason of the expiration of the term of an incumbent when no successor has been elected or qualified. The chief justice of the supreme court may designate a judge of another municipal court to act until that vacancy is filled in accordance with section 107.08 of the Revised Code. A vacancy resulting from the absence of a judge from official duties for a period of six consecutive months shall be determined and declared by the legislative authority.

(b) If a vacancy occurs in the office of judge or clerk of the municipal court after the one-hundredth day before the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May and prior to the fortieth day before the day of the general election, all candidates for election to the unexpired term of the judge or clerk shall file nominating petitions with the board of elections not later than four p.m. on the tenth day following the day on which the vacancy occurs, except that, when the vacancy occurs fewer than six days before the fortieth day before the general election, the deadline for filing shall be four p.m. on the thirty-sixth day before the day of the general election.

(c) Each nominating petition referred to in division (A)(1)(b) of this section shall be in the form prescribed in section 3513.261 of the Revised Code and shall be signed by at least fifty qualified electors of the territory of the municipal court. No nominating petition shall be accepted for filing or filed if it appears on its face to contain signatures aggregating in number more than twice the minimum aggregate number of signatures required by this section.

(2) If a judge of a municipal court that has only one judge is temporarily absent, incapacitated, or otherwise unavailable, the judge may appoint a substitute who has the qualifications required by section 1901.06 of the Revised Code or a retired judge of a court of record who is a qualified elector and a resident of the territory of the court. If the judge is unable to make the appointment, the chief justice of the supreme court shall appoint a substitute. The appointee shall serve during the absence, incapacity, or unavailability of the incumbent, shall have the jurisdiction and powers conferred upon the judge of the municipal court, and shall be styled “acting judge.” During that time of service, the acting judge shall sign all process and records and shall perform all acts pertaining to the office, except that of removal and appointment of officers of the court. All courts shall take judicial notice of the selection and powers of the acting judge. The incumbent judge shall establish the amount of compensation of an acting judge upon either a per diem, hourly, or other basis, but the rate of pay shall not exceed the per diem amount received by the incumbent judge.

(B) When the volume of cases pending in any municipal court necessitates an additional judge, the chief justice of the supreme court, upon the written request of the judge or presiding judge of that municipal court, may designate a judge of another municipal court or county court to serve for any period of time that the chief justice may prescribe. The compensation of a judge so designated shall be paid from the city treasury or, in the case of a county-operated municipal court, from the county treasury. In addition to the annual salary provided for in section 1901.11 of the Revised Code and in addition to any compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code to which the judge is entitled in connection with the judge’s own court, a full-time or part-time judge while holding court outside the judge’s territory on the designation of the chief justice shall receive actual and necessary expenses and compensation as follows:

(1) A full-time judge shall receive thirty dollars for each day of the assignment.

(2) A part-time judge shall receive for each day of the assignment the per diem compensation of the judges of the court to which the judge is assigned, less the per diem amount paid to those judges pursuant to section 141.04 of the Revised Code, calculated on the basis of two hundred fifty working days per year.

If a request is made by a judge or the presiding judge of a municipal court to designate a judge of another municipal court because of the volume of cases in the court for which the request is made and the chief justice reports, in writing, that no municipal or county court judge is available to serve by designation, the judges of the court requesting the designation may appoint a substitute as provided in division (A)(2) of this section, who may serve for any period of time that is prescribed by the chief justice. The substitute judge shall be paid in the same manner and at the same rate as the incumbent judges, except that, if the substitute judge is entitled to compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, then section 1901.121 of the Revised Code shall govern its payment.

Effective Date: 07-01-1997; 05-02-2006

(A)(1) Beginning July 1, 1997, judges designated as part-time judges by section 1901.08 of the Revised Code, other than part-time judges to whom division (B)(1)(a) of this section applies, shall receive as compensation thirty-five thousand five hundred dollars each year in addition to the compensation payable from the state treasury under division (A)(6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code.

(2) Part-time judges shall be disqualified from the practice of law only as to matters pending or originating in the courts in which they serve during their terms of office.

(B)(1)(a) Judges designated as full-time judges by section 1901.08 of the Revised Code, and all judges of territories having a population of more than fifty thousand regardless of designation, are subject to section 4705.01 of the Revised Code and, pursuant to division (C) of this section, beginning July 1, 1997, shall receive as compensation sixty-one thousand seven hundred fifty dollars per annum.

(b) These judges also shall receive, in accordance with division (B) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, the compensation described in division (A)(5) of that section from the state treasury.

(2) The presiding judge of a municipal court who is also the administrative judge of the court, shall receive, pursuant to division (C) of this section, an additional one thousand five hundred dollars per annum.

(C) The compensation of municipal judges that is described in divisions (A)(1) and (B)(1)(a) and (2) of this section may be paid in either biweekly installments or semimonthly installments, as determined by the payroll administrator, three-fifths of the amount being payable from the city treasury and two-fifths of the amount being payable from the treasury of the county in which the municipal corporation is situated, except that all of the compensation of the judges of a county-operated municipal court that is described in divisions (A)(1) and (B)(1)(a) and (2) of this section shall be payable out of the treasury of the county in which the court is located. If the territory is located in two or more counties, a total of two-fifths of the amount that is described in divisions (A)(1) and (B)(1)(a) and (2) of this section shall be payable by all of the counties in proportionate shares from the treasury of each of the counties in accordance with the respective populations of that portion of each of the several counties within the jurisdiction of the court.

(D) No municipal judge shall hold any other office of trust or profit under the authority of this state or the United States.

(E) As used in this section, “compensation” does not include any portion of the cost, premium, or charge for sickness and accident insurance or other coverage of hospitalization, surgical care, major medical care, disability, dental care, eye care, medical care, hearing aids, and prescription drugs, or any combination of those benefits or services, covering a judge of a municipal court and paid on the judge’s behalf by a governmental entity.

Effective Date: 12-18-2002

(A) As used in this section, “health care coverage” means sickness and accident insurance or other coverage of hospitalization, surgical care, major medical care, disability, dental care, eye care, medical care, hearing aids, and prescription drugs, or any combination of those benefits or services.

(B) The legislative authority, after consultation with the judges of the municipal court, shall negotiate and contract for, purchase, or otherwise procure group health care coverage for the judges and their spouses and dependents from insurance companies authorized to engage in the business of insurance in this state under Title XXXIX [39] of the Revised Code or health insuring corporations holding certificates of authority under Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code, except that if the county or municipal corporation served by the legislative authority provides group health care coverage for its employees, the group health care coverage required by this section shall be provided, if possible, through the policy or plan under which the group health care coverage is provided for the county or municipal corporation employees.

(C) The portion of the costs, premiums, or charges for the group health care coverage procured pursuant to division (B) of this section that is not paid by the judges of the municipal court, or all of the costs, premiums, or charges for the group health care coverage if the judges will not be paying any such portion, shall be paid as follows:

(1) If the municipal court is a county-operated municipal court, the portion of the costs, premiums, or charges or all of the costs, premiums, or charges shall be paid out of the treasury of the county.

(2) If the municipal court is not a county-operated municipal court, the portion of the costs, premiums, or charges or all of the costs, premiums, or charges shall be paid in three-fifths and two-fifths shares from the city treasury and appropriate county treasuries as described in division (C) of section 1901.11 of the Revised Code. The three-fifths share of a city treasury is subject to apportionment under section 1901.026 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 06-04-1997

(A) A municipal judge is entitled to thirty days of vacation in each calendar year. Not less than two hundred forty days of open session of the municipal court shall be held by each judge during the year, unless all business of the court is disposed of sooner.

(B) When a court consists of a single judge, a qualified substitute may be appointed in accordance with division (A)(2) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code to serve during the thirty-day vacation period, who shall be paid in the same manner and at the same rate as the incumbent judge, except that, if the substitute judge is entitled to compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, then section 1901.121 of the Revised Code shall govern its payment. If a court consists of two judges, one of the judges shall be in attendance at the court at all times, and the presiding judge shall have the authority to designate the vacation period for each judge, and when necessary, to appoint a substitute for the judge when on vacation or not in attendance. If a court consists of more than two judges, two-thirds of the court shall be in attendance at all times, and the presiding judge shall have authority to designate the vacation period of each judge, and, when necessary, to appoint a substitute for any judge on vacation or not in attendance.

Effective Date: 07-01-1997

(A)(1)(a) Subject to division (A)(2) of this section and in accordance with the payment procedures specified in division (B) of this section, a judge specified in division (A)(1)(b) of this section is entitled, on a per diem basis, to the compensation paid to the incumbent judge of the municipal court in which the judge is appointed or designated to serve. If the incumbent judge is compensated as described in division (A)(5) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, the appointed or designated judge is entitled to compensation at that rate. If the incumbent judge is compensated as described in division (A)(6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, the appointed or designated judge is entitled to compensation at that rate.

(b) The following judges shall receive compensation as described in division (A)(1)(a) of this section:

(i) An acting judge appointed pursuant to division (B) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code as a substitute judge because of the volume of cases pending in the municipal court and the report of the chief justice of the supreme court that no judge of another municipal court or county court is available to serve by designation;

(ii) A judge of another municipal court or county court designated by the chief justice of the supreme court pursuant to division (B) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code because of the volume of cases pending in the municipal court;

(iii) An acting judge authorized by division (B) of section 1901.12 of the Revised Code and appointed pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code as a substitute for the judge of a municipal court that has only one judge, who is on vacation;

(iv) An acting judge authorized by division (B) of section 1901.12 of the Revised Code and appointed by the presiding judge of the municipal court pursuant to that division as a substitute judge because an incumbent judge is on vacation or not in attendance;

(v) A retired judge who has been assigned to active duty on the municipal court.

(c) An acting judge appointed pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code as a substitute for a judge who is the judge of a municipal court that has only one judge and who is temporarily absent, incapacitated, or otherwise unavailable is entitled to compensation in an amount established by the incumbent judge pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 1901.10 of the Revised Code.

(2) Division (A)(1) of this section does not include any acting judge, judge, or retired judge who, at the time of the judge’s appointment, designation, or assignment, is receiving compensation under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, except that division (A)(1) of this section includes a judge who is receiving compensation under division (A)(6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code and who is appointed or designated to serve in a municipal court in which the incumbent judge receives compensation as described in division (A)(5) of that section.

(B) Subject to reimbursement under division (C) of this section, the treasury of the county in which a county-operated municipal court or other municipal court is located shall pay, on a per diem basis, the compensation to which an acting judge, judge, or retired judge as described in division (A)(1) of this section is entitled.

(C) The treasurer of a county that, pursuant to division (B) of this section, is required to pay any compensation to which the acting judges, judges, or retired judges described in division (A)(1) of this section are entitled under division (A)(5) or (6) of section 141.04 of the Revised Code, shall submit to the administrative director of the supreme court quarterly requests for reimbursements of the per diem amounts so paid. The reports shall include verifications of the payment of those amounts. The administrative director shall cause reimbursements of those amounts to be issued to the county if the administrative director verifies that those amounts were, in fact, so paid.

Effective Date: 07-01-1997

(A) In any action or proceeding of which a municipal court has jurisdiction, the court or any judge of the court has the power to do all of the following:

(1) Issue process, preserve order, punish contempts, summon and impanel jurors, refer matters to a referee, set aside a verdict, grant a new trial or motion in arrest of judgment, vacate or modify a judgment, suspend execution of sentence upon filing of notice of appeal, admit the defendant to bail, fix the amount of bond and approve the sureties, inquire into the financial responsibility of proposed sureties on all bonds in both civil and criminal actions or proceedings and, on the motion of any party or on its own motion, require security or additional surety, and to exercise any other powers that are necessary to give effect to the jurisdiction of the court and to enforce its judgments, orders, or decrees;

(2) Issue any necessary orders in any proceedings before and after judgment, for attachment or garnishment, arrest, aid of execution, trial of the right of property, revivor of judgment, and appointment of a receiver of personal property, for which authority is conferred upon the courts of common pleas or a judge of the court of common pleas;

(3) Hear and determine questions of exemptions upon application or action of any party to a pending cause;

(4) Control and distribute all property or the proceeds of property that are levied upon or seized by any legal process issuing from the court and that may come into the hands of its officers, and to order immediate sale of any property of a perishable nature that may come into the hands of an officer of the court upon any process issuing from the court. Any money realized from the sale of property of a perishable nature shall be deposited with the clerk until distributed by order of the court.

(B) Whenever an action or proceeding is properly brought in a municipal court within Cuyahoga county, the court has jurisdiction to determine, preserve, and enforce all rights involved in the action or proceeding, and to hear and determine all legal and equitable remedies necessary or proper for a complete determination of the rights of the parties.

Effective Date: 04-19-1988

Whenever an action or proceeding is properly brought in the housing or environmental division of a municipal court, the division has jurisdiction to determine, preserve, and enforce all rights involved in the action or proceeding, to hear and determine all legal and equitable remedies necessary or proper for a complete determination of the rights of the parties, including, but not limited to, the granting of temporary restraining orders and temporary and permanent injunctions, to render personal judgment irrespective of amount in favor of any party, and to render any judgments and make any findings and orders in the same manner and to the same extent that the court of common pleas can render a judgment or make a finding or order in a similar action or proceeding.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

(A) Municipal judges have the following powers and duties:

(1) To perform marriage ceremonies anywhere in this state, take acknowledgment of deeds and other instruments, administer oaths, and perform any other duties that are conferred upon judges of county courts.

All fees, including marriage fees, collected by a municipal judge when not connected with any cause or proceeding pending in the municipal court, shall be paid over to the clerk of the municipal court to be paid to the city treasury, except that, in a county-operated municipal court, the fees shall be paid to the treasury of the county in which the court is located.

(2) To adopt, publish, and revise rules for the regulation of the practice and procedure of their respective courts, and for the selection and manner of summoning persons to serve as jurors in the court;

(3) To adopt, publish, and revise rules relating to the administration of the court;

(4) On or before the last day of March of each year, the court shall render a complete report of its operation during the preceding calendar year to the legislative authority and to the board of county commissioners of each county within its territory. The report shall show the work performed by the court, a statement of receipts and expenditures of the civil and criminal branches, respectively, the number of cases heard, decided, and settled, and any other data that the supreme court, the secretary of state, the legislative authority, and the board of county commissioners requires.

(B) Any rule adopted pursuant to division (A)(2) or (3) of this section does not apply to the housing or environmental division of the municipal court if the judge of the housing or environmental division has adopted rules pursuant to division (C) of this section, unless the rules adopted pursuant to division (C) of this section do not regulate the subject regulated by the rule adopted pursuant to division (A)(2) or (3) of this section.

(C) Judges of the housing or environmental division of a municipal court, other than the judge of the environmental division of the Franklin county municipal court, may adopt, publish, and revise rules for the regulation of the practice and procedure of the division, for the selection and manner of summoning persons to serve as jurors in the division, and for the administration of the division.

Effective Date: 10-31-1996

(A)(1) Upon the written application of the director of administrative services or of at least three freeholders of the territory, a municipal judge may appoint one or more electors who are residents of the county as special constables, but only if either of the following applies:

(a) The territory within the jurisdiction of the municipal court served by the municipal court judge is contiguous to territory within the jurisdiction of a county court, the judge of that county court has appointed a special constable to guard and protect territory abutting territory in the municipal court’s jurisdiction, and the abutting territory within the municipal court’s jurisdiction is the property within the application for which a special constable is being sought.

(b) The territory within the jurisdiction of the municipal court served by the municipal court judge is coextensive with the boundaries of the county in which the court is located, and the municipal court is a successor court of a county court that previously served that county.

(2) In order to be eligible to serve as a special constable under this section, an elector shall hold a valid certificate issued by the Ohio peace officer training commission.

The special constables shall guard and protect from unlawful acts the property of the state specified in the application or the property of the applicant-freeholders and any property of the state under lease to the applicant-freeholders specified in the application. To the extent necessary to carry out the responsibility to guard and protect the property involved, a special constable shall have the same authority and shall be subject to the same obligations as a peace officer, as defined in section 2935.01 of the Revised Code.

(B) A municipal judge who appoints a special constable pursuant to division (A) of this section shall make a memorandum of the appointment upon the docket of the court. The appointment shall continue in force for one year unless the judge revokes it before the expiration of that one-year period. The applicant-freeholders for whose benefit a special constable is appointed shall pay the special constable in full for the special constable’s services, and the special constable shall receive no compensation except from those applicant-freeholders.

If a municipal judge wishes to reappoint an elector for a successive one-year period, before the elector may be appointed the elector shall have successfully completed a firearms requalification program approved by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission in accordance with rules adopted by the attorney general under section 109.743 of the Revised Code.

(C) A municipal judge who appoints a special constable pursuant to division (A) of this section, the municipal court on which the judge sits, the legislative authority associated with that court, and all political subdivisions within the territory of that court are not liable in damages in any tort or other civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property allegedly caused by any act or omission of the special constable that relates to the special constable’s official responsibility to guard and protect property.

(D) A special constable appointed pursuant to division (A) of this section is not liable in damages in any tort or other civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property allegedly caused by an act or omission of the special constable that relates to the special constable’s official responsibility to guard and protect property, unless the act or omission was committed or omitted with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner. The state, if the director of administrative services requested the appointment of the special constable, or the applicant-freeholders, if freeholders requested the appointment of the special constable, shall be jointly and severally liable in damages in any tort or other civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by an act or omission of the special constable that was committed or omitted with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner. The state or the applicant-freeholders are not liable in damages in any tort or other civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by any other act or omission of the special constable.

(E) This section does not affect any immunities from civil liability or defenses established or recognized by Chapter 2744. or any other chapter of the Revised Code, or available at common law, to which the state or a municipal judge, municipal court, legislative authority, political subdivision, special constable appointed pursuant to division (A) of this section, or applicant-freeholder may be entitled under circumstances not covered by this section.

Effective Date: 12-02-1996; 05-18-2005

In addition to the exercise of all the powers of a municipal judge, the presiding municipal judge has the general supervision of the business of the court and may classify and distribute among the judges the business pending in the court. He shall determine the amount and approve the surety and the terms of all official bonds. The presiding municipal judge may appoint a qualified substitute to serve during the disability of an incumbent of any appointive office created by sections 1901.31 to 1901.33 of the Revised Code, who is temporarily absent or incapacitated from acting as such. Any temporary appointee may be dismissed or discharged by the presiding municipal judge.

Effective Date: 08-19-1975

(A) Except as provided in divisions (B) and (C) of this section, upon a determination by the judge of the housing or environmental division of a municipal court that the volume of cases pending in the division does not constitute a sufficient caseload for the judge, the judge shall notify the administrative judge of the municipal court of the insufficient caseload in the division. After receipt of the notification, the administrative judge, in accordance with the Rules of Superintendence for Municipal Courts and County Courts, shall assign individual cases to the judge of the division from the general docket of the court, but, except in the case of the environmental division of the Franklin county municipal court, the administrative judge shall not assign the judge of a housing or environmental division to a particular session of the court. The administrative judge shall continue to make the assignments until notified by the judge of the division to discontinue making the assignments.

(B) If the administrative judge of the Toledo municipal court determines that the volume of cases pending in the housing division of the court does not constitute a sufficient caseload for the judge of the division, the administrative judge, in accordance with the Rules of Superintendence for Municipal Courts and County Courts, shall make assignments to the judge of the division. If assignments so occur, the administrative judge shall cease the assignments when he determines that the volume of cases pending in the division constitutes a sufficient caseload for the judge of the division.

(C) If the administrative judge of the Franklin county municipal court determines that the volume of cases pending in the environmental division of the court does not constitute a sufficient caseload for the judge of the division, the administrative judge, in accordance with the Rules of Superintendence for Municipal Courts and County Courts, shall make assignments to the judge of the division and may assign the judge of the division to a particular session of the court. If assignments so occur, the administrative judge shall cease the assignments when he determines that the volume of cases pending in the division constitutes a sufficient caseload for the judge of the division.

Effective Date: 07-08-1991

When a municipal court consists of more than one judge:

(A) The several municipal judges may sit separately or otherwise, as the presiding judge directs, and shall meet at least once each month, and at such other times as are determined, for consideration of the business of the court.

(B) Any order made by the presiding judge under the special powers conferred upon him may be vacated, amended, or modified by the vote of a majority of the judges of the court.

(C) The administrative authority vested in judges constituting a municipal court shall be exercised by a majority vote of such judges, including the presiding judge.

Effective Date: 08-19-1975

A municipal court shall have original jurisdiction only in those cases in which the amount claimed by any party, or the appraised value of the personal property sought to be recovered, does not exceed fifteen thousand dollars, except that this limit does not apply to the housing division or environmental division of a municipal court.

Judgment may be rendered in excess of the jurisdictional amount, when the excess consists of interest, damages for the detention of personal property, or costs accrued after the commencement of the action.

This section does not limit the jurisdiction of a municipal court to appoint trustees to receive and distribute earnings in accordance with section 2329.70 of the Revised Code.

Effective Date: 01-01-1997

(A) Except as otherwise provided in this division or section 1901.181 of the Revised Code, subject to the monetary jurisdiction of municipal courts as set forth in section 1901.17 of the Revised Code, a municipal court has original jurisdiction within its territory in all of the following actions or proceedings and to perform all of the following functions:

(1) In any civil action, of whatever nature or remedy, of which judges of county courts have jurisdiction;

(2) In any action or proceeding at law for the recovery of money or personal property of which the court of common pleas has jurisdiction;

(3) In any action at law based on contract, to determine, preserve, and enforce all legal and equitable rights involved in the contract, to decree an accounting, reformation, or cancellation of the contract, and to hear and determine all legal and equitable remedies necessary or proper for a complete determination of the rights of the parties to the contract;

(4) In any action or proceeding for the sale of personal property under chattel mortgage, lien, encumbrance, or other charge, for the foreclosure and marshalling of liens on personal property of that nature, and for the rendering of personal judgment in the action or proceeding;

(5) In any action or proceeding to enforce the collection of its own judgments or the judgments rendered by any court within the territory to which the municipal court has succeeded, and to subject the interest of a judgment debtor in personal property to satisfy judgments enforceable by the municipal court;

(6) In any action or proceeding in the nature of interpleader;

(7) In any action of replevin;

(8) In any action of forcible entry and detainer;

(9) In any action concerning the issuance and enforcement of temporary protection orders pursuant to section 2919.26 of the Revised Code or protection orders pursuant to section 2903.213 of the Revised Code or the enforcement of protection orders issued by courts of another state, as defined in section 2919.27 of the Revised Code;

(10) If the municipal court has a housing or environmental division, in any action over which the division is given jurisdiction by section 1901.181 of the Revised Code, provided that, except as specified in division (B) of that section, no judge of the court other than the judge of the division shall hear or determine any action over which the division has jurisdiction;

(11) In any action brought pursuant to division (I) of section 3733.11 of the Revised Code, if the residential premises that are the subject of the action are located within the territorial jurisdiction of the court;

(12) In any civil action as described in division (B)(1) of section 3767.41 of the Revised Code that relates to a public nuisance, and, to the extent any provision of this chapter conflicts or is inconsistent with a provision of that section, the provision of that section shall control in the civil action.

(B) The Cleveland municipal court also shall have jurisdiction within its territory in all of the following actions or proceedings and to perform all of the following functions:

(1) In all actions and proceedings for the sale of real property under lien of a judgment of the municipal court or a lien for machinery, material, or fuel furnished or labor performed, irrespective of amount, and, in those actions and proceedings, the court may proceed to foreclose and marshal all liens and all vested or contingent rights, to appoint a receiver, and to render personal judgment irrespective of amount in favor of any party.

(2) In all actions for the foreclosure of a mortgage on real property given to secure the payment of money or the enforcement of a specific lien for money or other encumbrance or charge on real property, when the amount claimed by the plaintiff does not exceed fifteen thousand dollars and the real property is situated within the territory, and, in those actions, the court may proceed to foreclose all liens and all vested and contingent rights and may proceed to render judgments and make findings and orders between the parties in the same manner and to the same extent as in similar actions in the court of common pleas.

(3) In all actions for the recovery of real property situated within the territory to the same extent as courts of common pleas have jurisdiction;

(4) In all actions for injunction to prevent or terminate violations of the ordinances and regulations of the city of Cleveland enacted or promulgated under the police power of the city of Cleveland, pursuant to Section 3 of Article XVIII, Ohio Constitution, over which the court of common pleas has or may have jurisdiction, and, in those actions, the court may proceed to render judgments and make findings and orders in the same manner and to the same extent as in similar actions in the court of common pleas.

Effective Date: 07-06-2001

(A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this division and division (A)(2) of this section and subject to division (B) of this section, if a municipal court has a housing or environmental division, the division has exclusive jurisdiction within the territory of the court in any civil action to enforce any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, or regulation applicable to premises used or intended for use as a place of human habitation, buildings, structures, or any other real property subject to any such code, ordinance, or regulation, and, except in the environmental division of the Franklin county municipal court, in any civil action commenced pursuant to Chapter 1923. or 5321. or sections 5303.03 to 5303.07 of the Revised Code. Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(2) of this section and subject to section 1901.20 of the Revised Code and to division (B) of this section, the housing or environmental division of a municipal court has exclusive jurisdiction within the territory of the court in any criminal action for a violation of any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, or regulation applicable to premises used or intended for use as a place of human habitation, buildings, structures, or any other real property subject to any such code, ordinance, or regulation. Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(2) of this section and subject to division (B) of this section, the housing or environmental division of a municipal court also has exclusive jurisdiction within the territory of the court in any civil action as described in division (B)(1) of section 3767.41 of the Revised Code that relates to a public nuisance. To the extent any provision of this chapter conflicts or is inconsistent with a provision of section 3767.41 of the Revised Code, the provision of that section shall control in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of that section.

(2) If a municipal court has an environmental division, if the mayor of any municipal corporation within the territory of the municipal court conducts a mayor’s court, and if any action described in division (A)(1) of this section as being within the jurisdiction of the environmental division otherwise is within the jurisdiction of the mayor’s court, as set forth in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code, the jurisdiction of the environmental division over the action is concurrent with the jurisdiction of that mayor’s court over the action.

(B)(1) If the judge of the environmental division of the Franklin county municipal court or the judge of the housing division of a municipal court is on vacation, sick, absent, or is unavailable because of recusal or another reason, the administrative judge of the court, in accordance with the Rules of Superintendence for Municipal Courts and County Courts, shall assign another judge or judges of the court to handle any action or proceeding or, if necessary, all actions and proceedings of the division during the time that its judge is unavailable.

(2) The Franklin county municipal court may adopt, by rule, procedures for other judges of the court to handle particular proceedings arising out of actions within the jurisdiction of the environmental division of the court when the judge of that division is unable for any reason to handle a particular proceeding at the time, or within the time period, necessary for a timely or appropriate disposition of the proceeding. Upon the adoption of and in accordance with those rules, any judge of the court may handle any proceeding that arises out of an action within the jurisdiction of the environmental division of the court.

Effective Date: 07-01-1997

In addition to other jurisdiction granted a municipal court in the Revised Code, a municipal court has jurisdiction over violations of township resolutions adopted pursuant to section 503.52 or 503.53 or Chapter 504. of the Revised Code. For procedural purposes, a case in which a person is charged with a violation of a township resolution shall be treated as a civil case, except as otherwise provided in the Revised Code and except that a violation of a township resolution that is adopted pursuant to section 503.52 or 503.53 of the Revised Code and that creates a criminal offense or imposes criminal penalties shall be treated as a criminal case.

Effective Date: 09-17-1991; 08-17-2006

In addition to jurisdiction otherwise granted in this chapter, the environmental division of a municipal court shall have jurisdiction within its territory in all of the following actions or proceedings and to perform all of the following functions:

(A) Notwithstanding any monetary limitations in section 1901.17 of the Revised Code, in all actions and proceedings for the sale of real or personal property under lien of a judgment of the environmental division of the municipal court, or a lien for machinery, material, fuel furnished, or labor performed, irrespective of amount, and, in those cases, the environmental division may proceed to foreclose and marshal all liens and all vested or contingent rights, to appoint a receiver, and to render personal judgment irrespective of amount in favor of any party;

(B) When in aid of execution of a judgment of the environmental division of the municipal court, in all actions for the foreclosure of a mortgage on real property given to secure the payment of money, or the enforcement of a specific lien for money or other encumbrance or charge on real property, when the real property is situated within the territory, and, in those cases, the environmental division may proceed to foreclose all liens and all vested and contingent rights and proceed to render judgments, and make findings and orders, between the parties, in the same manner and to the same extent as in similar cases in the court of common pleas;

(C) When in aid of execution of a judgment of the environmental division of the municipal court, in all actions for the recovery of real property situated within the territory to the same extent as courts of common pleas have jurisdiction;

(D) In all actions for injunction to prevent or terminate violations of the ordinances and regulations of any municipal corporation within its territory enacted or promulgated under the police power of that municipal corporation pursuant to Section 3 of Article XVIII, Ohio Constitution, over which the court of common pleas has or may have jurisdiction, and, in those cases, the environmental division of the municipal court may proceed to render judgments, and make findings and orders, in the same manner and to the same extent as in similar cases in the court of common pleas;

(E) In all actions for injunction to prevent or terminate violations of the resolutions and regulations of any political subdivision within its territory enacted or promulgated under the power of that political subdivision pursuant to Article X of the Ohio Constitution, over which the court of common pleas has or may have jurisdiction, and, in those cases, the environmental division of the municipal court may proceed to render judgments, and make findings and orders, in the same manner and to the same extent as in similar cases in the court of common pleas;

(F) In any civil action to enforce any provision of Chapter 3704., 3714., 3734., 3737., 3767., or 6111. of the Revised Code over which the court of common pleas has or may hav