The 50th District Court (which is also referred to as the Pontiac District Court) is located at 70 N. Saginaw Street in the city of Pontiac, Michigan. The Court serves the citizens Pontiac, and handles civil, criminal, nuisance, zoning, and traffic offenses that are alleged to have occurred in those locations. There is also a probation department within the 50th District Court to assist the Judges with individuals that have pending criminal cases before the Court and probationary sentences. The hours of operation for the Court are from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Monday through Friday. The Court is closed for all legal holidays. For persons that are not attorneys, camera phones are not permitted in the building.
The traffic division of the 50th District Court processes tickets and citations written by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department, and Michigan State Police officers. Non-criminal traffic violations can be paid at the 50th District Court, contested at an informal hearing without a lawyer (which usually occurs before the magistrate), or contested at a formal hearing before a Judge. The traffic division for the 50th District Court can be reached at (248) 758-3878. You have the right to hire an experienced traffic lawyer for purposes of a formal hearing; a city attorney or assistant Oakland County prosecutor represents the interests of the police department that issued the ticket or citation. An experienced traffic lawyer can, in many instances, negotiate a resolution to the ticket that carries less or no points in lieu of going forward with a hearing. For non-criminal traffic offenses a public defender is not provided.
The criminal division of the 50th District Court processes local ordinance, misdemeanor, and felony criminal matters in which the 50th District Court has jurisdiction. Criminal cases can involve both traffic and non-traffic related matters depending upon the circumstances. The criminal division for the 50th District Court can be contacted at (248) 758-3820. For criminal prosecutions the person accused has the right to hire an experienced criminal defense lawyer for legal representation or seek the assistance of a public defender if indigent. All criminal cases require the accused to appear in Court to address the charge and cannot be settled by merely paying a fine at the front counter.
The civil division of the 50th District Court processes civil cases involving money damages up to $25,000 (such as contract disputes, personal injury, dog bite cases, etc.). Landlord-tenant issues within the 50th District Court’s jurisdiction can also be filed at the Court’s civil division as well. For civil matters, it is up to the individual to hire an attorney to pursue civil actions because court appointed lawyers are not made available to litigants. However, an individual may choose to pursue a small claims action if he or she wants to try to avoid the expense of a lawyer. Small claims actions involve a cap to limit the maximum potential monetary recovery to $3,000 for the Plaintiff if he or she prevails, the parties do not have the right to a jury determination, and the parties also bear the risks of self-representation. The Defendant has the option of removing the small claims case to the Court’s general civil jurisdiction if he or she wishes to be represented by a lawyer, and the Defendant can also pursue a counterclaim if applicable. At the civil division, nuisance allegations and zoning issues are also generally filed. The civil division for the 50th District Court can be reached at (248) 758-3880.
The probation department provides bond recommendations, sentencing reports, alcohol assessments, supervises probationers, and conducts probation violation proceedings before the Judges assigned to particular cases. The probation department for the 50th District Court can be reached at (248) 758-3802. For all criminal matters and probation violation hearings, the accused has the right to hire an experienced criminal defense lawyer or request the assistance of a public defender.
There are 4 Judges at the 50th District Court to hear all of the aforementioned cases. Currently, the four Judges are Judge Cynthia Thomas Walker, Judge Preston G. Thomas, Judge Michael C. Martinez, and Judge Ronda Fowlkes Gross. It is recommended that any attorney that you hire to represent you have experience appearing before the Judges and magistrate at the 50th District Court. To receive effective representation the attorney should be familiar with the Court policies, procedures, and the judicial philosophies of each particular Judge and magistrate. The attorney should also have extensive experience in criminal law, criminal procedure, the rules of evidence, and courtroom litigation. Put yourself in the best position to get a good result by hiring an experienced criminal defense lawyer.
The lawyers at Hilf & Hilf, PLC appear before the Judges of the 50th District Court on a regular and consistent basis, although we are a completely independent law firm and are not affiliated with the Court. We have received excellent results on many felony, misdemeanor, local ordinance, traffic, and probation violation cases at the 50th District Court. We also provide outstanding legal representation before many other Courts throughout the state of Michigan. Hilf & Hilf, PLC is conveniently located at 1775 W. Big Beaver Road in the city of Troy. Call us at (248) 792-2590 to schedule an appointment.