The Civil Division includes Circuit Civil, County Civil and Small Claims. Circuit Civil is comprised of Family Law cases (divorces; name changes) and General Law cases (foreclosures, claims over $15,000). County Civil is comprised of tenant eviction cases and damage cases ($5,000 to $15,000). Small Claims includes claims less than $5,000.
The Criminal Division includes Circuit Court and County Court cases. Circuit Court handles felony cases. County Court handles misdemeanor, criminal traffic, and county and municipal ordinance cases.
The Juvenile Office handles dependencies and delinquencies.
Probate is the court-supervised process for establishment of wills, settlement of decedent's estates, and supervision of guardianships. The Probate Office maintains court files on probate estates, wills, and guardianships for both minors and incapacitated persons. They monitor, file, and store all pending case files and all wills that have been deposited with the department. Probate is necessary when the decedent leaves assets titled solely in his name.
Civil Traffic includes all traffic offenses where a court appearance is not mandatory.
Juvenile
The Juvenile Office is responsible for handling all juvenile cases and maintaining and filing all official records pertaining to juvenile court cases. Cases that are handled by the Juvenile Office include:
Dependency cases relate to juveniles who have been abandoned, abused, or neglected, including children excessively truant from school, persistent runaways, or ungovernable children.
Delinquency cases relate to any person under the age of 18 who has committed a violation of the law such as a felony, misdemeanor, contempt of court, or local penal ordinance.
Adoption cases handled by the Juvenile Division only include those where parental rights have been terminated.
ALL JUVENILE RECORDS ARE CONFIDENTIAL
Probate
If you have questions regarding probate, estates and wills, guardianship, incapacity, Substance Abuse Services for involuntary admission for alcohol or drug problems (Marchman Act), or Baker Act for involuntary admission for mental health problems including emergency admissions, call 335-2253.
If you are on probation, and/or need the Lee County Probation Department, call 335-2426.
Appeals
The Appeals Office prepares and monitors cases being appealed from County Court to Circuit Court and from Circuit Court to the District Court of Appeals.
A Notice of Appeal must be filed within (30) thirty days of rendition of the order to be reviewed. The original Notice and a copy, along with the filing fee, shall be filed with the Clerk of Courts. A sample form of the Notice of Appeal can be found in the rules of Appellate Procedure, rule 9.900(a).
Pro-se litigants may access the Florida Bar Appellate Handbook at http://prose.flabarappellate.org/default.asp.
Traffic - Fines
Pay Traffic Citations Online or by phone
or at these locations
Money Corner
The Check Cashing Store
Note: CDL license holders are not eligible for the
school election to withhold points and must come in and request a court
date.
The Traffic Office processes and maintains all traffic infractions that have been issued in Lee County. A traffic
infraction is a non-criminal violation and can usually be satisfied by paying
a fine. In some cases a defendant may elect to attend a defensive driving course
to avoid points against his/her driver's license. Court appearance is not required
unless the violation involves an accident with bodily injury to another person
or property, or you plead not guilty to the infraction, or the speeding violation exceeds 30mph. Traffic infractions
are due within 30 days of receipt of the ticket.
Payment may be made in person
at the traffic office location on the first floor at 2201 Second Street in downtown Fort Myers or at the
Lee County Government Complex in Cape Coral or by mail to the Lee County Clerk
of Courts, P.O. Box 2507, Fort Myers, FL 33902.
If the traffic infraction relates to your Driver's License, vehicle registration (Tag), insurance or equipment, you will only be able to pay these fines at the Clerk's office or by mail.
All other traffic infractions can be paid by Credit Card over the telephone or through the Link-2-Gov website. You can also pay your traffic infraction at any Money Corner or Check Cashing Store location in Southwest Florida.
An additional convenience fee will be applied when using these services. Payments thru these services must be made by midnight on the 29th day of the issuance of your citation. Weekends are counted in the 29 days.
Click here for more information about Link-2-Gov.
Click here for more information about Money Corner & for their locations.
(this link will open in a new window)
Click here for more information about The Check Cashing Store & for their locations.
(this link will open in a new window)
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Driver License, Tag, Registration and Insurance Violations: If cited for failure to carry/display and at the time the citation was issued, your license, tag, registration, and insurance was valid, the charge will be dismissed if you remit $10.00 and a photocopy of your valid document within 30 days. |
|
Improper/Unsafe Equipment (F.S. 316.610): For the $68.00 option, refer to #5 on the reverse side of your citation. You must pay $4.00 to the Law Enforcement Agency at the time of the inspection. You must then remit $64.00 to the Clerk's Office along with the completed Affidavit of Compliance within 30 days. |
Child Support
Effective November 2, 1999 all child support and alimony payments must be sent directly to the new State of Florida Disbursement Unit (FLSDU) in Tallahassee. This change is part of a new process required by federal and state law to help improve child support collections.
Payment Information:
It is important that you add 36 (the Lee County indicator) to the beginning
of your case number and include it on all payments.
Mail payments to:
State of Florida Disbursement Unit (FLSDU)
P.O. Box 8500
Tallahassee, FL 32314-8500
OR
Pay On line at: www.myFloridacounty.com Go to Online Services, then select Pay Child Support
For payment information call 1-877-769-0251 or 1-850-201-0140. You will need to know your case number and social security number.
Mail all address changes and requests for pay
records ($1.00 per page plus a SASE) to:
Lee County Clerk of Courts
P.O. Box 2488
Fort Myers, FL 33902
Enforcement:
For Department of Revenue cases, call 1-800-622-5437.
For non-DOR cases, call Family Court Services (S.A.V.E.) at (239) 335-2247 OR
Pay or Appear at (239) 533-2545.
Criminal
The Criminal Division includes Circuit Court and County Court cases. Circuit Court handles felony cases. County Court handles misdemeanor, criminal traffic, and county and municipal ordinance cases.