Courthouse Policies

Emergency Closure Policy

Please Note: A decision to close or delay opening the Montgomery County Circuit Court is made by the County Administrative Judge, and does not follow the decisions made by the Montgomery County Government or the Montgomery County Public Schools. In making the emergency closure decision, the judge is mindful of the fact that the Court labors under a heavy burden of cases, and that it can be seriously disruptive to litigants, witnesses, victims, and others if a Court or Clerk’s office is evacuated, closed, or delayed unnecessarily. Therefore, every effort is made to maintain regular business hours unless a delayed opening or closure is absolutely necessary.

If the Circuit Court experiences a delayed opening or closure due to weather or any other emergency event, the following resources will broadcast the information:

  • - WMAL, NBC/News 4, Fox News Channel 5, WJLA-TV Channel 7, News Channel 8, WUSA-TV Channel 9, WTOP, WBAL-TV Channel 11.
  • - A dedicated Circuit Court telephone number 240-777-9399 with a recorded message of the closure.
  • - Residents may register with Alert Montgomery to receive alerts about the Montgomery County Circuit Court and other County offices.

If a proceeding is scheduled on a day that the Circuit Court is unexpectedly closed, a notice from the Assignment Office will be mailed to all parties involved in the case with the rescheduled court date and time.

Additional information for jurors about emergency closures is available on the Jury Office Home Page.

Gavel resting on books

Delayed Opening Policy

If it is necessary to delay the opening of the courthouse due to unforeseen events, i.e., inclement weather or any other emergency that may arise, please note the following procedures regarding the court’s schedule:

All proceedings scheduled for the day will go forward in the order in which they were scheduled, however, cases will be reached on a delayed basis. For example, if the court’s starting time is delayed for two hours, cases scheduled for 8:30 a.m., 9:00 a.m. or 9:30 a.m. will be heard at 10:00 a.m. and cases scheduled for 10:00 a.m. will be reached upon completion of the cases scheduled at the earlier times. Despite the delay in reaching cases do not assume that if your case is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. you should arrive two hours later, because depending on the docket, your case may be reached at the normal scheduled time.

Adult Drug Court Inclement Weather Policy

Weather-related closings are treated as follows:

  • If the courthouse is closed on a Thursday that you are due in court, you will be contacted by your case manager.
  • OAS and urinalysis is ONLY closed if public transportation shuts down.
  • PRC residents MUST follow the directives of PRC staff. If you are not permitted to leave the building due to inclement weather, your absence will be considered excused.
  • Call the Urinalysis Hotline to listen for weather-related closings.
  • If you are still unsure about whether or not there is COURT, call your CASE MANAGER.
  • If you are still unsure about whether or not there is OAS GROUPS or URINALYSIS, call your THERAPIST.