Rochester City Court has jurisdiction over civil and criminal matters as defined in the Uniform City Court Act and the Criminal Procedure Law. The Court consists of nine Judges and three Judicial Hearing Officers. The Judges are elected to ten year terms & the hearing officers are appointed by the Court. The Supervising Judge for Rochester City Court is Hon. Theresa D. Johnson..

The Court is divided into ten parts. Parts I, III and V are the intake parts of the court. Part I is misdemeanor intake, Part V is felony and violation intake, and Part III is civil intake. Part I & V are located in the Public Safety Building. Part III is located in the Hall of Justice as well as the civil division's clerk's office.

The City Court's Criminal Division hears the cases of those arrested in the City of Rochester. It exercises preliminary jurisdiction over felonies and hears misdemeanors and violations to their completion. The criminal division operates a Drug Treatment Court. The criminal division's clerk's office is located in the Public Safety Building.

Civil procedure is guided by the Uniform City Court Act, Civil Practice Law & Rules and the Uniform Rules for New York State Trial Courts.

Criminal procedure is governed by the Criminal Procedure Law.