The Teton County courthouse, 2026 to 2028.
The courthouse at 180 S. King St. is gone. Since February 23, 2026, Teton County's District Court and Circuit Court have sat in temporary courtrooms at 250 E. Simpson Ave. while the new Justice Center goes up on the old block, with a move-in planned for summer 2028. I have practiced in these courts for years and my office is two blocks away. This page is what I tell clients before their first hearing: where to go, which court has your case, who the judges are, and what each courtroom expects.
Call or text me. Clients get my cell number from day one, and I answer. Just been served? Here's what happens next.
Three courts, two blocks.
Judge Melissa M. Owens · Ninth Judicial District. Divorce, custody and support, felonies, probate, juvenile, civil over $50,000. Clerk of District Court Anne C. Sutton, 307-733-2533, P.O. Box 4460. Courtroom at 250 E. Simpson Ave., Jackson, WY 83001.
Judge Erin E. Weisman, appointed August 2024. Misdemeanors including DUI and possession, felony first appearances, protection orders, small claims, civil to $50,000. Clerk Camille Kenny, 307-733-7713, P.O. Box 2906. Same temporary building.
Town of Jackson ordinance cases: traffic, parking, animal control and town misdemeanors written by Jackson police inside town limits. Now sitting in the Town Council chambers at Town Hall, 150 E. Pearl Ave., since the former federal courthouse on Simpson Avenue came down in February 2026; 307-733-3932. Initial appearances are generally Wednesdays at 9 a.m.
A citation from Yellowstone or Grand Teton is a federal case and is not heard in any of these courts. The National Parks chapter covers that court and its rules.
Where court is now, and where it is going.
The county bought a set of modular buildings in 2025, rebuilt them as courtrooms and offices on the lot beside the county administration building, and moved both courts in on February 23, 2026. Demolition of the King Street courthouse began March 9, 2026, the county broke ground on the Justice Center on May 11, 2026, and the courts are scheduled to move in during summer 2028.
What to expect in the temporary building
- Security screening at the entrance. Court security moved with the courts. Pockets empty, no knives or tools, phones silenced, and arrive early enough to be through the door before your case is called.
- Modular courtrooms. Built from the buildings the county bought in 2025 and rebuilt for the courts. Dress as you would have for the old courthouse; the bench book says no jeans.
- Same clerks, same phone numbers. Filing windows for both courts are inside. The District Court file is electronic; the clerk still accepts paper at the counter.
- Video and phone. The District courtroom runs Microsoft Teams and telephone audio; assisted listening is available. Whether a hearing may be remote is the judge's call, requested in advance.
The Justice Center, in brief
- Site: the old courthouse block at S. King St. and E. Simpson Ave., including the lot where the Clifford P. Hansen federal courthouse stood until February 26, 2026. Anderson Mason Dale Architects; about 80,000 square feet.
- Paid for mainly by the one-percent specific-purpose tax voters approved, with the county budgeting the remainder; the whole program is roughly $120 million including the temporary courts.
- Three full-size courtrooms and three judges' suites; District and Circuit Courts, the Clerk of District Court, the County and Prosecuting Attorney, the Sheriff and a second-floor jail, on one site. Public entrance on King Street; law enforcement on Simpson Avenue.
- Ground broken May 11, 2026 · foundations summer 2026, steel by year's end, roof in 2027, finishes winter–spring 2028 · move-in and opening summer 2028, on the county's current schedule.
Dates on this page are the county's published schedule as of October 2026. Construction schedules slip; the clerk's office confirms the current address and the court's calendar by phone.
Judge Owens, and how her courtroom runs.
Melissa M. Owens has been Teton County's district judge since January 19, 2022, appointed by Governor Gordon to succeed Judge Timothy C. Day on his retirement. The daughter of a Jackson lawyer, she took her law degree at the University of Wyoming, and before the bench spent five years as a deputy county and prosecuting attorney here, ran her own practice with a family-law emphasis, and sat part time as the Town of Jackson's municipal judge from 2014. Her current term expires in January 2031. Every divorce, custody case, felony and larger civil case in the county is assigned to her; there is no second district judge.
Her published bench book, written for the Wyoming State Bar, is specific about what she expects, and the expectations are the ones I build a Teton County case around. The scheduling conference after the answer is filed is held by telephone through her judicial assistant, and she wants counsel ready to discuss the discovery schedule and the motions they foresee. She reads the briefs; her stated preference is quality over quantity, hearings are set after a motion is fully briefed, and she will decide many motions on the papers without argument. Civil trials are set at the pretrial conference, pretrial motions are due five days before it, and trial days run nine to five.
In family cases, two practices matter most. In a contested custody case she requires a guardian ad litem to investigate the children's circumstances, and when a child is interviewed it happens in chambers with the court reporter and the lawyers present and the parents outside, with each side allowed to submit a few questions. And temporary restraining orders against moving assets or removing the children from the state are entered on request at the start of a case, which is why the first filing in a Teton County divorce is often that motion. The custody page and the step-by-step divorce page go through both.
Courtroom conduct is not a formality in this courtroom. The bench book names head-shaking, eye-rolling and discourtesy as unacceptable, expects counsel at the podium, expects permission before approaching a witness, and expects opposing counsel or the self-represented party copied on every email to chambers. Clients who sit through a hearing with a still face and a closed mouth do better than the ones who react.
- 01Judge Melissa M. Owens · appointed Dec. 2021, sworn in Jan. 19, 2022 · term to Jan. 2031
- 02Judicial assistant Anda Ralph · court reporter Lance Oviatt · staff attorney Molly Dearing · 307-733-1461
- 03Clerk of District Court Anne C. Sutton · 307-733-2533 · fax 307-734-1562 · codc@tetoncountywy.gov
- 04Mail: P.O. Box 4460, Jackson, WY 83001 · in person: 250 E. Simpson Ave., Jackson, WY 83001
- 05Filing: electronic through the Wyoming district courts' e-filing system for represented parties; paper at the clerk's window for everyone
- 01Judge Erin E. Weisman · appointed Aug. 2024 · on the ballot for retention Nov. 2026
- 02Clerk Camille Kenny · 307-733-7713 · fax 307-733-8694 · ccjac@courts.state.wy.us
- 03Mail: P.O. Box 2906, Jackson, WY 83001 · in person: 250 E. Simpson Ave., Jackson, WY 83001
- 04DUI, possession and other misdemeanors begin here; a felony begins here and is bound over to District Court
Names, numbers and addresses as published by the Wyoming Judicial Branch and Teton County in October 2026. Court hours are not posted online; call before a trip.
Which court has your case.
Asked before the first hearing.
Where is the Teton County courthouse right now?
Who is the District Court judge in Teton County?
Which court hears my case: District, Circuit or Municipal?
Can I appear by video instead of coming to Jackson?
Where do I park, and how early should I arrive?
When will the new Justice Center open?
Is the Teton County jail in the same place?
Start with a confidential conversation with Aaron Herzberg.
A consultation is a scheduled working session, in person in Jackson or by video, in which we go through your situation and I tell you what I would do. It is a paid working session, not a sales pitch. The fee is quoted when we schedule. Your note reaches me directly, my office runs the conflicts check and puts the meeting on my calendar, and you can call or text any time.
40 E Simpson Ave, Jackson, WY 83001 · by appointment · video consultations for out-of-state clients · info@puzzlegroup.com