GUIDE
Write "The Honorable" on the envelope and "Dear Judge" in the salutation, then check the rule that decides whether a judge can read your letter at all. Forms of address for every court level, plus how to mail it.
Here is how to address a letter to a judge. On the envelope and in the inside address, a judge is The Honorable followed by their full name, then their title and court on the next lines. In the salutation, a judge is Dear Judge followed by their last name, with a colon. Close with Respectfully, rather than Sincerely.
Envelope and salutation, standard form
The Honorable Jane Doe
Judge, [Name] County Superior Court
[Street address of the courthouse]
[City, State ZIP]
Dear Judge Doe:
That form works for nearly every trial and appellate judge in the United States. Supreme court justices, chief judges, and magistrate judges take a slightly different title, covered in the table below. Before you write any of it, though, answer one question.
Judges are bound by rules against ex parte communication: hearing from one side of a case without the other side present. The American Bar Association's Model Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 2.9, which most states have adopted in some form, says a judge "shall not initiate, permit, or consider ex parte communications" about a pending or impending matter. A judge who receives one must tell the other parties what it said.
In practice, that sorts letters into three groups:
When you are not sure which group you are in, call the clerk's office. They handle this question every day and will tell you where the letter should go.
The pattern is "The Honorable" for every judge, with the title on the second line and the salutation matching the title. These forms follow the University of Wisconsin Law School's forms-of-address guide, which reflects standard legal usage.
Judge | Envelope and inside address | Salutation |
|---|---|---|
Federal district or appellate judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, United States District Judge, [court name] | Dear Judge Doe: |
Chief judge of a federal court | The Honorable Jane Doe, Chief Judge, [court name] | Dear Chief Judge Doe: |
Federal magistrate judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, United States Magistrate Judge, [court name] | Dear Magistrate Judge Doe: |
Bankruptcy judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, United States Bankruptcy Judge, [court name] | Dear Judge Doe: |
Senior or retired judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, Senior Judge, [court name] | Dear Judge Doe: |
State trial judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, Judge, [court name] | Dear Judge Doe: |
State appellate judge | The Honorable Jane Doe, Judge, [court name] | Dear Judge Doe: |
State supreme court justice | The Honorable Jane Doe, Justice, Supreme Court of [state] | Dear Justice Doe: |
Chief justice of a state supreme court | The Honorable Jane Doe, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of [state] | Dear Chief Justice Doe: |
Two details trip people up. First, "The Honorable" is written out in full on the envelope; "Hon." is acceptable in an inside address but looks careless on the outside. Second, a retired judge keeps "The Honorable" for life, and you still write "Dear Judge" in the salutation.
If you do not know the judge's name, the court's website lists its judges by department or courtroom, and the clerk's office can confirm the assignment from a case number. Do not write "Dear Judge" with no name to a specific court; it signals you did not look.
Use a colon after the salutation, as in business correspondence. Inside the letter, refer to the judge as "Your Honor" or "Judge Doe." Put a subject line above the salutation with the case name and number, so the letter can be matched to the right file:
Re: People v. Ramirez, Case No. 24-CR-01187
Keep the body to one page and the tone plain. A judge reads for facts and specifics: how you know the person, what you observed, what you are asking. Argument, flattery, and criticism of the court all work against you. Close with "Respectfully," a handwritten signature, and your printed name, address, and phone number.
Most letters people write to judges are character references for sentencing. The judge is deciding what a fair sentence looks like, and a useful letter gives them something they cannot get from the file. Structure it in four short paragraphs:
Sign it, date it, and send it to the defense attorney by the deadline they give you. Ask whether the court wants originals or copies, and whether the attorney prefers mail or a scanned PDF. Do not send it to the judge's chambers on your own.
Use a standard #10 envelope with the return address in the top-left corner, the judge's full address in the center, and postage in the top-right corner. The envelope addressing guide covers line order, abbreviations, and the mistakes that get a letter returned. Court mailrooms are strict about addresses; include the department or courtroom number if the court's website lists one.
First-Class Mail is enough for a character letter or general correspondence. Use Certified Mail only when a rule or an attorney tells you to, because it adds a $5.55 fee to postage and gets the letter there no faster. The Certified Mail cost guide breaks down the totals if you need the signature record. Documents that must be filed or served in a case follow the court's service rules, not this page; the guide to legal noticing services explains how that work is handled.
If you would rather not print, address, and stamp the letter yourself, Postmarkr will do it: upload the PDF, enter the court's address, and the letter is printed, verified against USPS records, and mailed First-Class from $2.05, with processing milestones in your dashboard. Attorneys who send court and client correspondence in volume use the same flow for legal mail. Certified Mail is not currently available through Postmarkr, so a letter that requires it still goes through USPS.
This page describes conventions of address and mailing, not legal advice. For anything tied to a pending case, follow the direction of the attorney handling it or the court's clerk.