Virtual Access To The Courts

5th JUDICIAL DISTRICT VIRTUAL COURT ACCESS PROGRAM

The 5th Judicial District Virtual Court Access Program is a partnership between the 5th Judicial District of the New York State Courts, Community based Organizations and Public Libraries located within the 6 Counties that comprise the 5th Judicial District.  The goal of this program is to provide locations where community members can connect with the Courts via computer when they need to.

The locations are spread throughout Central New York comprising of the six counties of Onondaga, Oneida, Jefferson, Herkimer, Oswego, and Lewis.

This program allows you to appear in the Court via computer at a safe and private location.

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY, during certain hours.

You likely qualify for this program if you have a pending Court date in most Courts, except for County Court matters and appearances in NYS Town and Village Courts. 

 

HOW TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT:

To make an appointment, please call (315) 671-4699 OR E-Mail 5thVirtualCourtAccess@nycourts.gov

You must have the information about your scheduled court date with you, including the date, time, and which court you have to appear in. The person on the phone will take down your information and will schedule you for a location that is most convenient to you.

The Scheduler will provide you with detailed information about your assigned location.

Please let the Scheduler know if you need help with American Sign language or any other language so we can try to have an interpreter available.

 

ON THE DAY OF COURT:

On the day you have Court, you must arrive at your scheduled location 15 minutes prior to your Court time. An employee of the Not-for-Profit Organization or the Public Library will greet you when you enter the facility. 

The employee/volunteer will then escort you to a private room where they will set you up on the computer to attend Court. 

During your time with the Court, if you need to send documents to the Court or need to receive documents from the Court and print them, you may ask the employee/volunteer for assistance.

There is no day care available, but if you choose a library for your site and if you have children over 8 years old, they may go to the Children’s Department of that Library. If your children are under 8 years old, you must have a friend or family member come with you and stay with the children in the Children’s Department of that Library. 

Most Court dates qualify for this program, except for appearances in the Town or Village Courts of the State of New York, or appearances in County Court.

 

SITE LOCATIONS:

Below are sites for only ONONDAGA County, including the City of Syracuse:

Beauchamp Branch Library
2111 South Salina St., Syracuse, NY 13205
(South Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Central Library
447 South Salina St., Syracuse, NY 13202
(Central Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Cicero NOPL
8686 Knowledge Lane, Cicero, NY 13039 
(North of the City of Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

InterFaith Works
1010 James Street, Syracuse, NY 13202
(North Side)
Handicap Accessible

Lafayette Public Library
2577 County Road 11, Lafayette, NY 13203
(South of the City of Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Maxwell Memorial Library
14 Genesee Street Camillus, NY 13031
(West of the City of Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Mundy Branch Library
1204 South Geddes St., Syracuse, NY 13204
(West Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

PEACE, Inc.
County West Family Resources Center
93 Syracuse St. #700, Baldwinsville, NY 13027
(Southeast of the City of Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Peace, Inc.
Westside Family Resource Center
(West Syracuse)
200 Wyoming St., Syracuse, NY 13204
Handicap Accessible

Soule Branch Library
101 Springfield Rd., Syracuse, NY 13214
(East Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

White Branch Library
763 Butternut St., Syracuse, NY 13208
(North Syracuse)
Handicap Accessible

Below are sites for OUTSIDE Onondaga County; including the Counties of Oneida, Jefferson, Lewis, Oswego, and Herkimer:

Erwin Library and Institute
104 Schuyler Street, Boonville, NY 13309
(Oneida County)
Handicap Accessible

Hawn Memorial Library
220 John Street, Clayton, NY 13624
(Jefferson County)
Handicap Accessible

Lewis County Opportunities, Inc.
8265 State Route 812, Lowville, NY 13367
(Lewis County)
Handicap Accessible

Old Forge Library
220 Crosby Boulevard, Old Forge, NY 13420
(Herkimer County)
Handicap Accessible

Phoenix Public Library
34 Elm Street, Phoenix, NY 13135
(Oswego County)
Handicap Accessible

 

PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS

Please note the following partner organizations:

Volunteer Lawyers Project of Onondaga County, Inc.
Hiscock Legal Aid Society
Legal Services of Central New York
Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York
Center for Community Alternatives
Human Services Leadership Coalition
Onondaga County Public Libraries
Mid York Library System
Northern New York Library Network

 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Courthelp
NYS Courts Access to Justice Program
Do-it-Yourself forms[For divorce, name changes, etc.]
LawHelpNY
LIFT-Legal information for Families
NYCOURTS
Topics A to Z NY Courts

This Project is made possible by the generous support of the Onondaga County Bar Association Bar Foundation, the Central New York legal community, the Office for Justice Initiatives, and the 5th Judicial District of the New York State Courts.