Where is Columbus City Court located?
Columbus City Court is located on the second floor of city hall.
City Hall
I don’t live in Columbus. Do I have to drive there in order to appear?
If you live more than 150 miles from Columbus, the Columbus City Court may utilize Zoom for some court appearances. You must submit a request for a Zoom hearing via email. You can email the request to the Court Clerk: Brooke.Weiss@mt.gov
Zoom links will be given upon approval by the Judge.
What if I miss my court date?
Contact the court immediately to reschedule your appearance.
I have a question about my case. When is a good time to contact the Court?
The City Court Clerk is in the office Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 8:00am to 5:00pm. During court hearings, the Clerk will be unavailable to assist you.
PLEASE NOTE: The Court Clerk can help with case questions, proceedings/hearings and basic court questions. The Clerk CANNOT give legal advice.
What if I don’t appear at my hearing or pay my fine?
If you fail to appear for a hearing or don’t pay your fine, your driver’s license may be suspended and/or a warrant may be issued for your arrest.
How do I find out if there is a warrant for my arrest?
Warrants are issued when you fail to appear at a court hearing. If you think you may have a warrant, call the Court Clerk to verify.
How will getting a traffic ticket affect my insurance?
The Court does not report traffic tickets to insurance companies. Insurance companies have access to your driving record and make their own decisions on how traffic offenses will affect your rates.
Why is my driver’s license suspended out of Columbus City Court?
When you don’t make a payment on time, fail to appear at a hearing, or don’t comply with a requirement of your sentence, multiple warning notices are mailed to the address listed on the citation. (These may include a Warning Notice, Notice of Imminent Driver’s License Suspension, or a Show Cause Notice.) These notices warn of pending suspension if you do not pay your fine or see the Judge by the given date. After the time given on the warning notice has expired, your driver’s license will be suspended until the above conditions are met. Once you are in good standing with the Court, your driver’s license will be reinstated. You will be responsible for paying the reinstatement fee to the Montana Motor Vehicle Division.
When is my citation payment due?
Your payment is due on or before your court date listed on the left side of the citation.
How much is my citation?
You may call the Court Clerk to ask about fine amounts. You can also log on to CitePayUSA.com with your citation information to get the amount owed.
How do I pay my citation?
Mail:
Columbus City Court
PO Box 549
Columbus, MT 59019
Online: CitePayUSA.com
This is for credit or debit card payments. Please note that there is a 5% transaction fee that will be charged by the processing company to use this service.
In Person:
Columbus City Court
408 E 1st Ave N
Columbus, MT 59019
During regular business hours, there is a drop box upstairs next to the court clerk’s windows. If the building is closed, you may leave your payment in the drop box outside of the main City Hall building doors
What kind of payments do you accept?
We accept cash, check, cashier’s check and money order. We can also take Visa, MasterCard, and Discover credit/debit cards.
I went online at CitePayUSA.com to pay my citation and it says I need to appear in court. Why?
The majority of traffic tickets can be paid online, however there are a few exceptions such as: driving while suspended, operating a vehicle without insurance (2nd or subsequent offenses), driving under the influence, or reckless driving. These violations have a mandatory court appearance.
You also must appear upon 45 code violations such as assault, minor in possession, theft, criminal possession of dangerous drugs/paraphernalia, etc.
A citation for a city code violation can be paid online, but only after first speaking to the Court Clerk.
A citation for a city code violation can be paid online, but only after first speaking to the Court Clerk.