Citizen Help

Protection Orders
Click here for more information about protection orders. IF YOU ARE IN IMMEDIATE DANGER CALL 9-1-1. The Maine Department of Health and Humans Services maintains a list of resources for victims available at this link http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/phone1.htm

Welcome, the Citizen Help section of this site will help you find assistance and information, about the Maine Judicial Branch. This information is not legal advice. If you need legal advice, consult an attorney. Legal organizations may also help persons unable to afford an attorney.

The Judicial Branch Citizen's Guide to the Maine Courts Provides useful information about the types of cases heard in court, what the judicial process is and how it works, how a trial proceeds, and the way in which the Maine courts are organized. The Guide is intended to be helpful to citizens generally, and in particular to students, to the media, and to those who may appear in a courtroom, whether as a juror, as a party or as a witness in a trial.

Getting Started

Contact the Courts

Abuse & Harassment

Accessibility and Interpreters

Court Fines

Pay your State of Maine court fines on-line using your credit card. This is a a premium service provided by In for ME, the Information Resource of Maine, for the payment of State of Maine court fines and fees. If you have a fine due in any of Maine’s courts you may use this service to pay the fine.  If you wish to pay a traffic ticket, please visit our online Poetics service at www.paytixx.com.

You will be assessed a premium service fee of $6 per fine paid to use the online court fines and fees payment service. The premium service fees are not State imposed fees. This fee is charged for the use of this online service.

Contact the clerk of court that is handling your case for questions about fine balances, due dates etc.

Criminal Cases

Traffic Violations

Families & Children

Small Claims

Divorce

Evictions

A Forcible Entry and Detainer Action (FED) is the formal name for the eviction hearing that takes place in District court.

 

Juvenile Cases

Juvenile cases are part of the Family Division. Learn more here: www.courts.state.me.us/maine_courts/family/juvenile.html

Foreclosure

 

Mediation

Mediation is available through Court Alternative Dispute Resolution (CADRES) in domestic relations matters, small claims, evictions, larger civil and commercial cases, and in land use and environmental disputes. In some types of cases, the parties must participate in some other form of mediation before they can proceed to a contested hearing.

Mediation Brochures

Probate Court

The Probate Court handles all estates, both formal and informal; guardianships for both adults and minors; conservatorship, changes of name; adoptions; and other legal matters. More information is available at www.maineprobate.net.

Maine Government Resources

Executive Branch Legislative Branch