Delaware’s Modern Justice of the Peace Court Celebrates 60th Anniversary

Image courtesy DE Courts

Sixty years ago, the Justice of the Peace Court joined the Delaware State Court system by an act of the State Legislature and a gala dinner and reception was held in Dover Monday night.

JP Courts have their roots in England and Colonial America, but the modern court began in the First State in 1965-66. Before that Justice of the Peace Court magistrates were paid through the fines they imposed, courtrooms were more likely a porch, garage or kitchen.

Today there are 12 JP Courts statewide, 62 judicial officers with over 242,800 court filings and over 259,000 dispositions in Fiscal Year 2026. It is the only state court that keeps a court open 24/7 – 365 days a year.

Additional information from Delaware Courts:

Nearly 200 employees, judicial officers and guests attended. Justice of the Peace Court Administrator Liz Petrick acted as emcee and the program featured remarks by Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz, Jr., Governor Matt Meyer, State Sen. Darius J. Brown and Justice of the Peace Court Chief Magistrate Alan Davis. “The Justice of the Peace Court is the bedrock of Delaware’s criminal and civil justice systems,” said Chief Magistrate Davis. “No other state has a true entry-level court that has as meaningful jurisdiction or plays such an integral part within the state court system. We are proud of our heritage but always have our eyes on the future.”

The legislation to bring the court into the state system was signed in March 1965, and the court began operations in January 1966 with new, more professional standards, policies and courtrooms. The court’s first official case was a guilty plea to a traffic charge – running a stop sign – resulting in a $17 penalty.

The Justice of the Peace Court currently has the largest number of court locations of any of Delaware’s six courts – 12 – the largest number of judicial officers – 62 – and the largest number of filings and dispositions – 242,876 filings and 259,294 dispositions in Fiscal Year 2026. In keeping with the court’s roots and tradition of acting as “a middle ground”  between the citizens and the courts, judicial officers (with the exception of the Chief Magistrate) do not have to be
attorneys, but rather citizens with “good sense and integrity.”  The modern court, however, does train its magistrates on the law and legal procedures.