Hamilton County Circuit and Superior Courts Overview
Indiana builds its trial system around Circuit Courts, Superior Courts, and limited city and town courts. Hamilton County is a Circuit and Superior Court county. It has the Hamilton Circuit Court and Hamilton Superior Courts No. 1 through No. 7, all at 1 Hamilton County Square in Noblesville, each in its own suite.
The courts work as an integrated system, not a set of isolated rooms. Local rules assign certain case types to specific courts, and judges review a weighted caseload at least once a year. The Circuit Court judge can transfer an action to a Superior Court with the receiving judge's consent, and the reverse is also allowed, so a case can be re-docketed and handled as if filed in the new court.
Directory of Hamilton County Trial Courts
All nine court offices share one address but use different suites and phone lines. The directory below lists each court, its judge, suite, and phone, plus the Traffic Violations Bureau. Knowing the suite before you arrive saves you from wandering between floors.
| Court | Judge | Suite | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Circuit Court | Andrew R. Bloch | 337 | 317-776-9635 |
| Superior Court No. 1 | Michael A. Casati | 345 | 317-776-9655 |
| Superior Court No. 2 | Jonathan M. Brown | 384 | 317-776-9647 |
| Superior Court No. 3 | William J. Hughes | 311 | 317-776-9709 |
| Superior Court No. 4 | J. Richard Campbell | 292 | 317-776-9612 |
| Superior Court No. 5 | David K. Najjar | 297 | 317-776-8260 |
| Superior Court No. 6 | Stephenie K. Gookins | 215 | 317-770-4450 |
| Superior Court No. 7 | Darren J. Murphy | 239 | 317-770-8800 |
| Traffic Violations Bureau | n/a | 292 | 317-776-8584 |
Court Administration, in Suite 313 at 317-776-8589, runs the system but does not accept case documents by email. The Juror Information Line is 317-776-8282 for people called to jury service.
Circuit and Superior Courts vs. City and Town Courts
The county courts and the local city and town courts handle different work. The Circuit and Superior Courts are general trial courts. City and town courts handle limited local matters. The comparison below sorts them out.
| Point | Circuit and Superior Courts | City and Town Courts |
|---|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | General trial | Limited and local |
| Case types | Felonies, civil, family, probate, small claims | Ordinance, infraction, minor traffic |
| Location | Government and Judicial Center, Noblesville | Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville local courts |
| Appeals | To the Indiana Court of Appeals | Trial de novo to county courts |
Cases that start in a city or town court can move to the county courts by trial de novo, which means a fresh trial rather than a record review.
How a Case Moves Through the Hamilton County System
A case follows a path from filing through any appeal. Local rules set the entry point, and the appellate system handles review. The flow below shows the common route.
Case flow: City or Town Court › Hamilton Circuit and Superior Courts › Indiana Court of Appeals › Indiana Supreme Court
Most appeals from the Hamilton trial courts go first to the Indiana Court of Appeals. The Indiana Supreme Court takes discretionary review in many cases and direct review in a limited set, and it supervises the court rules. A federal issue does not automatically make a case federal; a Hamilton County case stays in county court unless it is filed in or removed to federal court.
Civil, Family, and Criminal Case Assignment
Local Administrative Rule 103 is the key to where cases land. It assigns name-change and gender-marker petitions to the Circuit Court, CE cases to Superior Court No. 2, and BMV title petitions to Superior Court No. 4. Small claims and evictions go to Superior Courts 4, 6, and 7.
Criminal assignment follows local practice too. The Prosecutor's Major Felony Team handles cases filed in the Circuit Court and Superior Courts 1, 2, 3, and 5, with murder and felony levels filed randomly by type among those courts. Domestic-battery and invasion-of-privacy misdemeanors, plus certain Level 6 felonies and strangulation offenses, are filed into Superior Court No. 3.
Judicial Circuit and Local Rules
Hamilton County's courts operate under local rules adopted pursuant to Indiana Trial Rule 81. Those rules organize how the county assigns, manages, and transfers cases, and they explain why specific case types go to specific courts. The courts are in session Monday through Friday except legal holidays, with emergency closings handled by the judge after consulting county officials and the Sheriff.
The Prosecuting Attorney serves the 24th Judicial Circuit, which covers Hamilton County. Several Superior Courts also use a Digital Evidence Portal for exhibits unless a court directs otherwise, a sign of how technology-driven the local system has become.
The local rules cover more than assignment. They address court hours, emergency closings, weighted caseload review, and the transfer of actions between courts. They require current litigant contact information in the Chronological Case Summary so the court can reach parties when a hearing changes. These details rarely matter until they do, and then they decide whether you get notice of a change.
Specialty Courts in the Hamilton County System
The Hamilton trial courts run problem-solving programs alongside their regular dockets. The Drug Treatment Court is active, and the Courts page posted a 2026 graduation marking four participants who finished the program. It pairs judicial review with treatment, supervision, and accountability for eligible defendants.
A Veterans Court also operates under Indiana Code 33-23-16-26. Participation is voluntary if accepted, and the court looks for verified military service, a link between the offense and that service, and no disqualifying charges. These programs show how the county courts blend treatment with ordinary case processing.
Magistrate and Lower Courts
Below the county trial courts, city and town courts in places like Carmel, Fishers, and Noblesville handle ordinance, infraction, and lower-level matters when authorized. Traffic and ordinance cases may start in these limited courts or in the Superior Courts, depending on the ticket and the charge.
Trial de novo rules govern appeals from city and town courts to the county level. So a person unhappy with a city-court result may get a fresh trial in a county court rather than a paper appeal. Small claims dockets within the Superior Courts round out the lower-level civil work.
Federal Courts Serving Hamilton County
Hamilton County sits in the federal Southern District of Indiana. Federal civil and criminal cases are not in MyCase; they run through the federal courts and PACER. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana handles trials, with the main courthouse in Indianapolis.
The Southern District of Indiana court site is shown below.
Federal bankruptcy is separate. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana, shown below, handles individual and business bankruptcy.
Appeals from the district court go to the Seventh Circuit, shown below.
Federal case records live in PACER, the official federal system, shown below.
Federal prosecution is handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana, shown below.
Search federal cases at PACER; they will not appear on the Hamilton County roster or in MyCase.