Areas We Serve
From our offices in St. Charles and Brentwood, we represent people in courts across the St. Louis region and beyond. Each county page explains how cases move through that county's courts.
Criminal charges, traffic tickets and injury claims in Missouri are handled county by county, and each county's courts run a little differently. JMH Law represents people throughout the St. Louis region from two offices: one on N. Main Street in historic St. Charles and one on Manchester Road in Brentwood.
How Missouri's courts are organized
Every Missouri county belongs to a judicial circuit. Some circuits are a single county, like St. Louis County; others cover several rural counties that share judges. Within a circuit:
- Associate circuit judges usually hear misdemeanors, traffic offenses charged under state law, and the early stages of felony cases, including first appearances and preliminary hearings.
- Circuit judges hear felony cases once they are bound over for trial, along with larger civil cases such as serious injury claims.
- Municipal courts are run by cities, and some counties run one too. They hear violations of local ordinances, which is where most city traffic tickets go.
Which court your case is in depends on who wrote the ticket or filed the charge, and under which law. That matters: the rules on fines, points and appearances differ between them. You can look up most state cases on Missouri Case.net.
Counties we serve
| County | Judicial circuit | Courthouse | Nearest JMH office |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis County | 21st | Clayton | Brentwood |
| City of St. Louis | 22nd | Downtown St. Louis | Brentwood |
| St. Charles County | 11th | St. Charles | St. Charles |
| Jefferson County | 23rd | Hillsboro | Brentwood |
| Franklin County | 20th | Union | Brentwood |
| Lincoln County | 45th | Troy | St. Charles |
| Warren County | 12th | Warrenton | St. Charles |
| Boone County | 13th | Columbia | St. Charles |
| Phelps County | 25th | Rolla | Brentwood |
Each county page covers that county's courthouse, its treatment courts, its municipal courts, what to expect at a first appearance, and the communities we serve there.
What we handle
- Criminal defense: misdemeanors and felonies, DWI, drug charges, and expungements.
- Traffic tickets: speeding, driving while suspended, points and municipal court.
- Personal injury: car and motorcycle crashes, falls, workers' compensation and wrongful death.
Talk to a lawyer about your case
If you've been charged or ticketed anywhere in the area, call 314-827-6222 or contact us to talk about your case. This page is general information, not legal advice.