District and Municipal Courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, or are limited in the types of cases they may hear. For example, traffic and misdemeanor cases are handled by these courts.

District courts are created by counties and have concurrent jurisdiction with superior courts over misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor violations and civil cases under $50,000. They have exclusive jurisdiction over small claims and infractions.

• Visit the King County District Court web page.

Municipal courts are similar to district courts but are created by cities and towns.

• Visit the Seattle Municipal Court web page. (external link)
• Find general information on district and municipal courts in Washington State.

For more information on the Washington State court system:

• Visit the Office of the Administrator for the Courts web page (external link) or see
• A Citizen’s Guide to Washington State Courts. (external link)