The Licking County Municipal Court handles traffic offenses, misdemeanor criminal cases, civil lawsuits up to $15,000, and small claims disputes. Located in Newark, Ohio, it serves all of Licking County, which includes Hebron. Two judges preside over the court: David N. Stansbury and B. Matthew George.
Clerk of Courts
Carrie D. Masterson, Clerk
40 West Main Street,
3rd Floor
Newark, Ohio 43055
Phone: (740) 670-7800
Fax: (740) 345-4250
Mon – Fri 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Closed Daily Noon to 1:00 PM
If you have a request, motion for continuance, or other need to communicate with the court you can send an email to: office@lcmunicipalcourt.com
Jury Commissioner
Phone: (740) 670-7858
Probation Department
Phone: (740) 670-7825
Fax: (740) 670-7759
CIVIL FORMS & SMALL CLAIMS
Application for Limited Driving on a FRA Suspension
Forcible Entry and Detainer Complaint
Notice to Leave Premises
Form for Petition to Modify 12 Point Suspension
Small Claims Court Guide
Small Claims Complaint Form
Out Of State Suspension Application
Praecipe for Service-Eviction Only
Legal Aid for Veterans Information
Judge David N. Stansbury
Judge David N. Stansbury has served as a judge for the Licking County Municipal Court since July of 2010 after his appointment to the bench by the governor. He was elected to a full, six-year term in 2011. He currently serves as the immediate past Administrative and Presiding Judge of the court.
Judge Stansbury is a member of the Licking County and Ohio State Bar Associations. He is also a member of the Ohio Judicial College and Ohio Association of Municipal and County Court Judges. He serves on numerous committees with these organizations, including the Specialized Dockets, Criminal Law, and Civil Law committees. He has presided over LIFT Court, which is the Municipal Court drug court program, since 2010 and is a member of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.
Judge Stansbury has spent his entire career practicing law in Licking County after graduating from Boston University School of Law in 1996. He served as an articles editor for the International Law Journal at BUSL. Judge Stansbury received a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Ohio State University in 1993, with a major in history and a minor in Russian Studies. He was a member of Phi Alpha Theta National Honorary History Society. He earned a perfect 4.0 grade point average while studying Russian language, history, and culture at Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia in 1992 through the Institute for Russian and Baltic Studies.
Judge Stansbury was born in Newark and graduated from Granville High School in 1988 where he was Vice-President of his class and President of the National Honor Society. He played football, earning all-LCL honors on both offense and defense, and tennis.
Judge Stansbury is a member of the Board of Directors for Hospice of Central Ohio, located in Newark, Ohio, which provides end of life and palliative care for patients throughout central Ohio. He previously served as Vice-President of the Licking County Alcoholism Prevention Program Board of Directors and also as a board member and advisor to the Granville Recreation Commission and Granville Recreation District, respectively.
Judge Stansbury lives in Newark with his wife, Cathy, their daughter Catie, and his stepsons, Alex James and Josh James.
Judge B. Matthew George
Judge B. Matthew George was elected to the Licking County Municipal Court on November 5, 2019. He began his term January 1, 2020.
Before his election to the Court, Judge George served as a Magistrate and Staff Attorney in the Licking County Court of Common Pleas for over twelve years.
Judge George grew up in Baltimore, Ohio, where he graduated from Liberty-Union H.S. in 1998. In 2002, he graduated from Ashland University where he was an Ashbrook Scholar in the John M. Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs. He graduated from the Washington and Lee University School of Law in 2007.
Judge George is a member of the Licking County Bar Association, the Ohio State Bar Association, and the Ohio Association of Municipal and County Court Judges.
He lives in Newark with his wife Katelyn and their daughters Lydia and Emily.
Clerk Carrie D. Masterson
Carrie Masterson was elected as Licking County Municipal Clerk of Court in November, 2025. Ms. Masterson is a lifetime resident of Licking County.
Ms. Masterson, and her staff of 18 full-time deputy clerks and an IT Administrator, serve the citizens of Licking County daily in the Municipal Clerk’s Office. The Clerk’s Office carries out its prescribed duties in compliance with the statutes established in the Ohio Revised Code. Established procedures and legal processes ensure the accurate, efficient processing, recording and maintenance of municipal court case documentation.
In years prior to being elected as Clerk of Court, Ms. Masterson worked for Licking County Municipal Court and Licking County Common Pleas Court as a court reporter and then bailiff.
Carrie Masterson is a member of the Ohio Association of Municipal Clerks of Court and currently serves on its legislative committee.