Writing a Court Hearing Request Letter Step-by-Step

This article was co-authored by Clinton M. Sandvick, JD, PhD. Clinton M. Sandvick worked as a civil litigator in California for over 7 years. He received his JD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and his PhD in American History from the University of Oregon in 2013.

This article has been viewed 113,990 times.

You can request a court hearing in a variety of ways. Typically, you would file a motion with the court and pick up a hearing date when you file. Alternately, you could request a hearing date in person. If you want to request a hearing date using a letter, then you should check to see if the court allows you to request a hearing in this manner. If the court does, then you should write the letter as you would a business letter.

Gathering Necessary Information

• Alternately, you may be in the midst of litigation and want a hearing so that you can bring something to the attention of the judge. Maybe the other side in the lawsuit has not handed over requested documents. At the hearing, you can ask the court to order the other party to do something.
• Identify your reason for the hearing because you might not be able to use a letter to request a hearing in all situations.

• Also, some courts might not accept letters. Instead, you will need to fill out a motion form. Your court should have blank motion forms for you to fill out. In the form, you explain what you want to talk to the judge about at the hearing. If your case is ongoing, then you might need to file a motion instead of writing a letter.
• A blank sample motion form for Colorado is available at https://www.courts.state.co.us/Forms/renderForm1.cfm?Form=365. Check with your court if they have a blank motion form.

• your case name
• your case number
• the name of the court clerk

• You also might try to find a legal aid organization near you. Legal aid organizations provide legal services to low-income people either for free or at a reduced rate. You can find a legal aid organization near you by visiting the Legal Services Corporation’s website at www.lsc.gov. Search by entering your zip code.

Writing Your Letter

• Pinal County, Arizona, for example, has a form you can use to request a hearing in traffic court.
• To check if your court has a form you can use, call the court clerk and ask. Sometimes, courts will require that you complete a Notice of Hearing form first, which will then allow you to get a hearing date.

• Then space down two lines and insert the date, justified to the left-hand margin. Two lines below this, type the court’s address.

Insert a salutation. If you know the court clerk’s name, then you can use it. For example, “Dear Ms. Carson.” Otherwise, type “Dear Clerk” for a salutation. [1] X Research source

• The heading might read: “RE: Jones v. Jones, Case # 12345.” [2] X Research source

• For example, you could simply state, “I am writing to request a court hearing date in the above-referenced matter.”

• Alternately, you might request a hearing because a party has not turned over evidence. In this situation, you could type, “The police department has not responded to my request for a copy of my arrest record. I made the request in writing on Jun 12, 2015. It has now been three months. I am requesting an order to compel the department to turn over a copy of the record.”

• Sample language could be, “Please mail the hearing date to the address provided. If you have any questions, then please call me at [insert number].”

Sign the letter. Space down two lines from your concluding paragraph and insert “Sincerely.” Then space down three or four lines and type your name. You can then sign your name in the space provided. [3] X Research source

• If you need to serve notice on the other party, then you can typically do so by mailing the letter or by having it served on the other party. Service may be made by anyone 18 or older who is not a party to the lawsuit.

Mail the letter. Send the letter certified mail, return receipt requested so that you know the court has received it. If you don’t hear back from the court in a week, then you should follow up with a phone call.

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1. ↑http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/courts/circuit/pdf/ccr-d-230.pdf
2. ↑http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/courts/circuit/pdf/ccr-d-230.pdf
3. ↑http://thelawdictionary.org/article/how-to-write-a-request-for-continuance/

About This Article

This article was co-authored by Clinton M. Sandvick, JD, PhD. Clinton M. Sandvick worked as a civil litigator in California for over 7 years. He received his JD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and his PhD in American History from the University of Oregon in 2013. This article has been viewed 113,990 times.

In some courts, you can request a hearing by writing a letter to the clerk. Call your court clerk to ask if you can request a hearing by letter. You might need to file a lawsuit before you can request a hearing. If it’s okay to write a letter, ask for a form letter for which you just need to fill in the blanks. You’ll need your case name and number and the name of your court clerk for your letter. If you’re writing the letter from scratch, open your letter by writing something like, “I am writing to request a court hearing date in the above-referenced matter.” You’ll also need to explain why you need the hearing. For example, if you want a hearing on a traffic violation, write something like, “I am Not Guilty and I want the opportunity to present my case.” For more tips from our Legal co-author, including how to address your letter, read on.

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