The Lakewood Municipal Court hears misdemeanors, infractions, parking, and photo violations. The Municipal Court is a Court of Limited Jurisdiction, meaning it only handles cases in Lakewood, Steilacoom, and DuPont.
Lakewood Municipal Court
6000 Main St SW Lakewood, WA 98499
[email protected]
(253) 512-2258 phone (253) 512-2267 fax
Phones:
Monday to Thursday: 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 to 4:00 p.m.
Friday: 9:00am-12:00pm
Counter:
Monday to Thursday: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. & 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Friday: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Note: Friday 3:00 p.m. hearings are for administrative purposes only, no one is present.
Small claims cases, civil cases, name changes, etc. are handled at Pierce County District Court. Felony criminal cases, divorce, bad credit, child support, and probate are handled at Pierce County Superior Court.
12/04/24 – The recent statewide court system outage has caused a significant backlog in the processing of court payments, filings, and hearing scheduling. Online payments have been restored, however, there are some instances when the system is not successfully pulling up the correct record. Collection activity is on hold until the backlog is cleared. All emails, record requests, and filings will be processed in the order received. Please keep in mind that multiple calls & emails to check the status of ticket filings, payments, emails, and records requests will cause a delay in processing and response. We appreciate your patience.
Announcements
Holiday Closures
Tues Dec 24th Court will close at 3:00pm.
Wed Dec 25th – Closed
Tues Dec 31st Court will close at 3:00pm.
Wed Jan 1st – Closed
Mon Jan 20th – Closed
Payment Portal Issues
12/04/24 – We are aware of an ongoing issue with our payment portal that in some instances the system reports “unable to locate record” for a case/infraction/notice/ticket number. Make sure you select the correct jurisdiction option: City of Lakewood; Lakewood Photo; City of Steilacoom; DuPont Photo; or City of DuPont. We apologize for the inconvenience as the vendors attempt to resolve the issue.
Statewide Courts Outage
Emergency Administrative Order 24-01
Washington courts and justice system members are reporting a recent and significant increase in jury scam calls, emails and mailings targeting state residents. Scammers can be very convincing, repeating your name, address, Social Security numbers and other information that makes them seem legitimate. Please tell your family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors that courts, law enforcement and government agencies do not initiate calls about missing jury service and warrants, and will never ask for payment or financial information over the phone.
Hearing Instructions and Access
The majority of hearings are held in person. If you are more than 30 minutes late, your hearing will not proceed and you will need to contact the court for options. If you have an 8:30 a.m. hearing, the door by the court entrance will unlock around 8:15 a.m.
Court hearings are open to the public. Video Hearings are streamed live on our Youtube Channel.
Video Hearings:
- Monday traffic calendars – you may attend in-person or via Zoom; if you filed a subpoena for the officer to be present you must attend in person.
- In Custody Hearings – for individuals held at Nisqually Tribal Jail (Pierce County Jail is usually held in person).
- Once a month we have a limited calendar for criminal hearings via Zoom.
If you are scheduled for a ZOOM Hearing:
- Use Meeting ID 627 145 1418 and Password 162810. You will be placed in a waiting room.
- Your full name needs to be displayed (e.g. “John’s iPhone” should be “John Doe”).
- Please keep yourself muted and your camera off until your case is called. Once your matter is called turn your microphone & camera on. Do not move around as it is distracting to the Judge and others.
- Participants should conduct themselves as if they were in person inside the actual courtroom (no smoking, eating, drinking, etc).
For Attorneys
Court Filings:
- Filings can be emailed (preferred) to [email protected] as .pdf files or faxed to 253-512-2267.
- Electronic filings must comply with LMCLR GR1.9. If you submit an electronic filing you do not need to mail or deliver by messenger the original. If an agreed motion is filed without a signature from the City Attorney’s Office, then it will not be forwarded to the judge for review.
- Criminal matters, per LMCLR CR4.1, require a signed agreed order for a continuance to be filed no less than four working days before the scheduled hearing.
- Infraction continuances, per LMCLR IR2.6(a)(l), for mitigation or contested hearings, are to be filed seven days prior to the date of the hearing.
City Prosecutor:
- Contact the City Prosecutor at 253-589-2489. Requests for discovery can be emailed to [email protected].
OCourt:
- The Municipal Court utilizes a program called OCourt (Open Court) to generate electronic court orders. The court will provide defendants a hard copy of their court orders, however, we will not provide attorney copies of court orders that can be printed at their offices.
- Attorneys can create an OCourt account (PDF).
- OCourt User Guide (PDF)
Laws
State Laws
Local Laws
Presiding Judge Tim Lewis
Judge Lewis was appointed as the Municipal Court Judge in November 2024. Prior to his appointment, Judge Lewis spent approximately twenty years as a prosecutor in both Pierce and Kitsap Counties. As a prosecutor, Judge Lewis prosecuted a broad spectrum of criminal cases while serving as a Senior Deputy Prosecutor, Felony Property Crimes Unit Supervisor, Special Assault Unit Supervisor, Misdemeanor Division Chief, and Felony Division Chief. Following his career as a prosecutor, Judge Lewis took a position in private practice with a law firm handling criminal and civil litigation throughout the State of Washington.
In 2010, Judge Lewis was certified by the Washington State District and Municipal Court Judges’ Association as a Judge Pro Tem. Judge Lewis subsequently began appearing as a Pro Tem Judge in municipal courts in Kitsap, Pierce, and Thurston Counties, including Lakewood Municipal Court.
Judge Lewis is member of the Washington State Bar Association, the Tacoma Pierce County Bar Association, and the Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington. Judge Lewis has served on various bar committees including the Bar Convention Planning Committee, Judicial Qualifications Committee, and presently the Friend Committee. He has also appeared as a presenter and lecturer at several Continuing Legal Education seminars for attorneys licensed in the State of Washington.
Judge Lewis received his undergraduate degree from the University of Washington and his law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law.