Delaware Justice of the Peace Court Locations, Hours, and Contact Numbers

Delaware handles civil disputes with claims up to $25,000, excluding interest and court costs, through the Justice of the Peace Court system, which operates locations across all three counties. If you've been served with a civil claim — or need to file one — knowing which court handles your case and when it's open saves you wasted trips and missed deadlines.

New Castle County JP Courts

New Castle County handles the highest volume of JP Court civil cases in Delaware.

JP Court 13 — New Castle 2 Penns Way, Suite 203, New Castle, DE 19720. This is the state's highest-volume civil JP Court location. Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Phone: 302-323-6070. If you're responding to a civil claim filed here, this is where your Answer (Civil Form 51) gets delivered.

JP Court 9 — Middletown 757 North Broad Street, Middletown Square, Middletown, DE 19709. Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Phone: 302-378-5221.

The Limited Legal Assistance Program separately offers free 15-minute attorney consultations at the Leonard L. Williams Justice Center, 500 North King Street, Wilmington, on a limited schedule — useful if you need quick guidance on your response options.

Kent County JP Court

JP Court 16 — Dover 414 Federal Street, Room 173, Dover, DE 19901. Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Phone: 302-739-4316. This is the JP Court civil location for Kent County.

Sussex County JP Court

JP Court 17 — Georgetown 23730 Shortly Road, Georgetown, DE 19947. Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Phone: 302-856-1447. This is the JP Court civil location for Sussex County. Georgetown is also where the Office of the Chief Magistrate is located at 5 East Pine Street — that's the administrative office where businesses must send their Certificate of Representation (Form 50) and the $20 annual fee under Supreme Court Rule 57. If your LLC or corporation needs to appear in any JP Court statewide, the Form 50 application goes to Georgetown regardless of where your case was filed.

General Hours and Filing

The civil JP Court locations listed above are open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Hours may change for holidays or administrative closings. Before making a trip to file paperwork in person, call ahead to confirm the clerk's office is open.

You can also verify current hours and contact information through the Delaware Judiciary website at courts.delaware.gov, which maintains a directory of all JP Court locations with addresses and phone numbers.

Which Court Has Your Case

The court handling your case is printed on your summons. Look at the case caption at the top of the Complaint — it identifies the specific JP Court by number and county (for example, "In the Justice of the Peace Court of the State of Delaware, In and For New Castle County, Court No. 13").

Your Answer must be filed at that specific court location. Filing at a different JP Court won't count, and you'll risk missing your 15-day deadline while trying to redirect the paperwork.

If you believe the case was filed in the wrong county, you can raise improper venue as a defense — but file your Answer at the listed court first to protect your deadline, then raise the venue issue separately. For help choosing this strategy, see Delaware small claims venue rules.

Filing Remotely

You don't have to file in person. Answers can be mailed to the clerk's office (make sure it arrives before the 15-day deadline, not just postmarked by then) or filed electronically through the eFlex system. See how eFlex eFiling works for the online filing process.

For a complete guide to responding to a Delaware JP Court civil claim — including deadline calculations, forms, and hearing preparation — the Responding to a Small Claims Case in Delaware guide walks through the entire process step by step.

See more Delaware guides →