South Lake Tahoe and the rest of El Dorado County’s side of the lake have their own courthouse: the South Lake Tahoe branch of the El Dorado County Superior Court, on Johnson Boulevard, a few minutes’ drive from the state line. Criminal cases from the lake are filed in this court, and many are heard in that building.
I’m Theodore FitzGerald, a criminal defense lawyer licensed in California and Nevada, with an office in Stateline. I work from one rule: the government has to follow the law at every step, in South Lake Tahoe as in Stateline.
Where the court is and what it hears
The South Lake Tahoe branch is at 1354 Johnson Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150. The building hears civil, criminal, family law, juvenile, probate, small claims, and traffic matters. The court lists two branches for criminal cases: this one, and the Main Street branch at 495 Main Street in Placerville.
The court is explicit that a DUI is not a traffic matter: “Driving Under the Influence (DUI) violations are not heard in the Traffic Division.” A DUI, like any other misdemeanor or felony, goes to the criminal calendar.
When a citation is set for court
The court publishes a cite-out chart that assigns each week’s citations to a court date. Under the 2026 chart, an officer citing a case from the East Slope (the court’s term for its South Lake Tahoe side) sets a felony for a Monday at 8:30 a.m. and a misdemeanor for a Friday at 8:30 a.m. Infractions on the East Slope go to the infraction court at the same building at 8:00 a.m. The date on your citation controls; the chart is how it was chosen.
The court’s traffic pages warn that failing to deal with a citation by its due date “may result in a failure to appear, and a hold may be placed on your DMV record.”
Can I appear remotely?
The court allows remote appearances in criminal cases. It uses its own platform, the Unicorn Digital Courtroom, rather than Zoom or Teams, and a party has to request approval under the court’s local rules. The criminal form is the Application and Order for Videoconference Appearance (M-51). Once approved, registration for the hearing opens 14 days ahead and closes 15 minutes before the start time. There is no fee for remote appearances in criminal matters.
The court is direct about what happens if you don’t show up on the screen or in person: the hearing may go forward without you, or the court may take other action.
When a remote appearance is approved, treat it like a courtroom. Use a quiet room, a working camera and microphone, and dress as you would for court. Judges notice, and a clean remote appearance makes the next request easier to grant.
Address and contact
El Dorado County Superior Court, South Lake Tahoe Branch 1354 Johnson Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150 Criminal and traffic clerk: (530) 573-3044 Clerk’s office: Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Court website: eldorado.courts.ca.gov
Working with FitzGerald Law in South Lake Tahoe
My office is in Stateline, on the Nevada side of the same town. On a South Lake Tahoe case, the office files the remote-appearance application where it makes sense, tells you in advance which hearings need you in the courtroom, and handles the paperwork the court requires. If the arrest also affects a Nevada matter (a license, a probation term, a pending case), both sides get looked at together.
The date on your paperwork is already set. Hire me now, and I’ll get to work on everything that comes before it. Call FitzGerald Law.