The first question after a citation or an arrest is usually where to show up, and the paperwork does not always make it obvious. Grays Harbor County has a district court, a superior court, and a handful of municipal courts, and which one handles your case depends on what you were charged with and which agency filed it. The Rossback Firm appears in these courts regularly from an office in downtown Aberdeen, and knowing the layout ahead of the first hearing takes some of the edge off.

What is the difference between the two courts?

The Superior court is Washington’s court of general jurisdiction. Grays Harbor County Superior Court handles felonies, civil cases above the district court’s limits, family law, probate, guardianships, juvenile offender matters, and dependency cases. It also hears appeals from the courts of limited jurisdiction in the county.

District court is a court of limited jurisdiction. It handles misdemeanors and gross misdemeanors, traffic infractions, anti-harassment and protection orders, small claims, and general civil disputes within its monetary limits.

The classification of the charge is what drives the split. A misdemeanor carries up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. A gross misdemeanor carries up to 364 days and $5,000. Anything above that is a felony, and felonies belong in superior court.

Which court gets my case?

For criminal matters, the answer turns on the offense level and the citing agency. A DUI, a fourth degree assault, a third degree theft, or driving while license suspended is a gross misdemeanor and stays in a court of limited jurisdiction. A residential burglary, a second degree theft, an assault in the second degree, or a felony drug charge goes to superior court.

Theft is a good illustration of how quickly the line moves. Property valued under $750 is third degree theft and a gross misdemeanor. Between $750 and $5,000 it becomes second degree theft, a class C felony, and the case leaves district court entirely. The same conduct, different dollar figure, different building.

DUI works similarly. Most DUI cases are gross misdemeanors. A fourth offense within ten years, or a case with a prior vehicular homicide or vehicular assault conviction, is charged as a felony and moves to superior court.

Grays Harbor County District Court operates from two locations. The Montesano division at the county courthouse handles criminal matters, and the Aberdeen division on Sumner Avenue handles traffic infractions and civil filings. If your paperwork lists a hearing without specifying, the address printed on the citation controls.

One practical note for anyone with a civil or infraction matter in 2026. The district court has publicly reported significant staffing shortages, pausing processing of some civil filings in July and warning that infraction processing could be affected as well. Criminal hearings continue, but anyone filing or expecting a response on a civil matter should plan for delay and confirm status with the court.

What about the Aberdeen and Hoquiam municipal courts?

Cities in Washington may operate their own municipal courts, and several in Grays Harbor County do. Aberdeen, Hoquiam, Cosmopolis, Elma, Montesano, Oakville, Ocean Shores, and Westport have all maintained municipal courts, which handle violations of city ordinances and misdemeanors charged by city police.

That means the arresting agency usually tells you where you are going. A citation written by an Aberdeen police officer for an incident inside city limits typically goes to Aberdeen Municipal Court on East Market Street. The same offense a few miles outside city limits, cited by a sheriff’s deputy or the State Patrol, goes to district court in Montesano.

These arrangements shift over time. Smaller cities sometimes contract with the county district court rather than staffing their own bench, and those contracts change. The court named on your summons is the authority, not what a neighbor remembers from a case five years ago.

Where does a felony case actually start?

After a felony arrest, the person is brought before a judge for a preliminary appearance, generally within 48 hours of being booked. The judge addresses probable cause and conditions of release.

The prosecuting attorney files an information, the charging document for a felony. Arraignment follows in superior court, ordinarily within 3 days of first appearance for someone who is in custody or has already appeared.

A felony that gets reduced during negotiation can move the other direction. A second degree theft amended down to third degree theft, for example, ends up resolving as a gross misdemeanor.

How quickly do these cases move?

Washington’s speedy trial rules set the outer limits. A defendant held in custody is entitled to trial within 60 days of arraignment, and a defendant who is out of custody within 90 days. The same structure applies in superior court and in the courts of limited jurisdiction.

Those deadlines are routinely extended by agreement, and extensions are often in the defendant’s interest while discovery is reviewed or negotiations continue. What matters is that the clock is a tool rather than a guarantee, and waiving it should be a decision rather than an accident.

Jury composition differs between the two courts. A felony jury in superior court seats twelve. A jury in district or municipal court seats six.

What should I expect when I get to the courthouse?

The Grays Harbor County Courthouse sits at 102 West Broadway Avenue in Montesano and houses the superior court, the county clerk, the district court criminal division, and the probation office in the same building. Plan for security screening and give yourself time to find the right room, since superior court and district court hearings can be running simultaneously on different floors.

Arrive early and dress as you would for a job interview. Bring the paperwork you were given, any proof of things you were told to complete, and a way to write down what happens. Calendars in these courts move fast, and a first appearance that took three weeks to arrive can be over in four minutes.

If you were found indigent and assigned counsel, that attorney is usually meeting you in the hallway shortly before the hearing. Coming in with your questions written down makes that conversation more useful.

Can I appeal a district court decision?

Yes, and it goes to superior court rather than to an appellate court. An appeal from a court of limited jurisdiction is a RALJ appeal, heard by a superior court judge on the record made below rather than as a new trial.

Appeals from superior courts go to the Court of Appeals. The deadlines for both are short and unforgiving, which makes the decision to appeal one to raise immediately after a ruling rather than weeks later.

What The Rossback Firm covers before a first hearing

The starting point is confirming which court, which judge, and what the charge actually is as filed, since what an officer said at the scene and what the prosecutor charges are frequently different. From there the conversation turns to conditions of release, whether a no-contact order was entered, what the next date requires, and what can be accomplished before it.

Local practice matters more than people expect. How a particular court handles continuances, pretrial diversion options, and negotiated resolutions varies, and that knowledge shapes strategy well before trial becomes a question.

Where your case lands comes down to the level of the offense and the agency that filed it: gross misdemeanors and infractions in district or municipal court, felonies in superior court at the Montesano courthouse. Knowing the route in advance makes the first appearance far less disorienting. The Rossback Firm represents people in the district, municipal, and superior courts across Grays Harbor County and the surrounding counties. If you have a court date coming up and are not sure what it is for, a consultation before that date is the right first move.