Magisterial District Court 38‑1‑23

Magisterial District Court 38-1-23 is one of 29 district courts in Montgomery County, part of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It serves Whitemarsh Township from an office on Center Avenue in Lafayette Hill, a community within Whitemarsh Township. The January 2026 county list also assigns Conshohocken Borough to this court, though an older county boundary page disagrees.

District courts handle preliminary arraignments and preliminary hearings in criminal cases, summary offenses, traffic citations, local ordinance violations and smaller civil claims such as landlord-tenant disputes. Most felony and misdemeanor cases do not end here: when charges are held for court, the case moves to the Court of Common Pleas in Norristown.

The county's January 5, 2026 list assigns Whitemarsh Township and Conshohocken Borough to Court 38-1-23.

The county's older district-boundary web page instead splits Conshohocken Borough between Courts 38-1-13 and 38-1-23 by voting district (districts 1, 4 and 6 for 38-1-13; districts 2, 3, 5 and 7 for 38-1-23). That boundary page still lists retired District 38-1-14, so it may be out of date, but we could not confirm which assignment is current. We do not present the historic precinct division as current.

Whitemarsh Township is assigned here without conflict. A Conshohocken mailing address alone does not establish jurisdiction: Court 38-1-13's office on West Ridge Pike also has a Conshohocken address.

Bail is a judicial decision based on the charges, the person's history, ties to the community and the risk of missing court. Pennsylvania options include release on recognizance, unsecured bail (no money paid up front) and monetary bail, which may be posted in cash or through a surety where the law allows. Judges can add conditions such as no-contact orders or reporting requirements, and can later change bail on request.

For Whitemarsh and Conshohocken arrests, the preliminary arraignment may happen by video or before an on-call issuing authority after hours, so bail is not always set at this office. Setting bail is the court's role; paying it is a separate step. Montgomery County publishes direct-payment rules through the Clerk of Courts on weekdays and at the correctional facility after hours when the person is held there. Do not assume cash bail can be paid at the district court office.

After release, the defendant must attend every hearing and follow every condition. Missing court can lead to a bench warrant and forfeited bail.

Court 38-1-23 is at 4002 Center Avenue, Lafayette Hill. It is a separate office from Court 38-1-13 on West Ridge Pike in Conshohocken and from the main courthouse in Norristown.

We have not verified parking arrangements at this office, so none are listed. Check posted signs on arrival and allow extra time.