🏛️ Court Records Search by State: Complete Guide for 2026

Court records are the backbone of background checks, skip tracing, asset investigations, and legal research. This guide explains how court record systems work in every state, what types of records are available, how to search them, and when to use a professional investigation service to get the results you need.

Whether you’re checking someone’s criminal history, researching civil lawsuits and judgments, verifying bankruptcy filings, looking for people through court records, or investigating a business before suing them, understanding how court records work is essential. This guide covers the types of court records available, how to access them in each state, the limitations of free online searches, when professional investigation services deliver better results, and how court records support skip tracing, asset searches, and background investigations.

Court records are public records in most cases, which means anyone can access them. However, “public” doesn’t mean “easy to find.” The decentralized nature of American courts means you may need to search multiple courthouses, use different online systems, pay various fees, and navigate different access rules to piece together a complete picture. Professional investigation services exist precisely because this process is time-consuming, complex, and prone to gaps when done by non-experts.

📋 Types of Court Records

Court records fall into several distinct categories, each maintained by different courts and containing different types of information. Understanding these categories helps you determine which records are relevant to your situation and where to look for them.

🌐 How Court Records Are Organized by State

Every state organizes its court system differently, which directly affects how records are searched and accessed. Understanding your state’s court structure tells you exactly where to look for specific types of records.

🔍 How to Search Court Records

🌐 Online Court Record Searches

Many courts now offer online access to their records through electronic case management systems. The level of online access varies dramatically by jurisdiction — from fully searchable databases with complete case documents to basic indexes that show only case numbers and parties with no document access.

🏛️ In-Person Courthouse Searches

Despite the growth of online access, many court records are still accessible only through in-person visits to the courthouse. Approximately 40% of U.S. counties lack comprehensive online record access, requiring researchers to physically visit clerk of court offices to search records. In-person searches are necessary when the court lacks an online search system, when online records don’t go back far enough (many online systems only cover recent years while paper records extend back decades), when you need complete case documents rather than just index information, or when the record you need is in a restricted category that requires in-person identification and verification to access.

Professional investigation and screening companies maintain networks of local court researchers — trained individuals who can visit courthouses on request to conduct searches and retrieve documents. This nationwide researcher network is one of the primary reasons that professional services deliver more complete results than consumer-grade online searches, which are limited to whatever is available electronically.

📧 Written Record Requests

Most courts accept written requests for records by mail or email. This is useful for obtaining certified copies of specific documents (judgments, orders, case filings) when you know the case number and court. Written requests typically require a fee for search time, copying costs, and certification (if needed). Processing times range from a few days to several weeks depending on the court’s workload and staffing.

📊 What Court Records Reveal for Investigations

Court records are one of the most valuable information sources for any type of investigation. Here’s how different types of investigations use court records to achieve their objectives.

🚩 Limitations of DIY Court Records Searches

While court records are public, searching them effectively is more difficult than most people expect. DIY court record searches have significant limitations that can result in incomplete or misleading results.

🔐 Sealed and Restricted Court Records

Not all court records are publicly accessible. Several categories of records have access restrictions that limit who can view them and under what circumstances.

Record Type	Access Level	Notes
👶 Juvenile records	Sealed in virtually all states	Not accessible through standard public searches; some exceptions for law enforcement and certain employment screenings
🔒 Expunged records	Removed from public access	Varies by state; some states physically destroy records, others seal them
👨‍👩‍👧 Family court details	Partially restricted	Index information often public; financial disclosures and child-related details often sealed
🏥 Mental health proceedings	Restricted in most states	Involuntary commitment records typically sealed; some exceptions for firearms background checks
🔐 Grand jury proceedings	Sealed	Grand jury deliberations are secret; indictments become public once filed
🤝 Settled cases (some)	Varies	Some civil cases are sealed as part of settlement agreements; varies by court approval
📋 Pre-trial diversions	Varies by state	Completed diversion programs may result in case dismissal and sealing
🏛️ National security cases	Classified / sealed	Cases involving classified information have restricted access

💰 Court Records Search Costs

Search Method	Cost	Coverage	Turnaround
🆓 Free county court website	Free	Single county, limited years	Instant (if available)
🌐 PACER (federal)	$0.10/page, $3 cap per document	All federal courts	Instant
🔍 State repository search	$10 – $50 per state	Statewide (coverage varies)	1 – 5 business days
📋 Certified copy request	$5 – $25 per document	Specific document	3 – 14 business days
🔎 Commercial aggregator	$20 – $100 per search	Multi-state, gaps possible	Instant to 24 hours
🕵️ Professional courthouse search	$25 – $75 per county	Complete county coverage	1 – 5 business days
📋 Professional background check	$50 – $150 package	All relevant counties + state + federal	3 – 7 business days

For complete pricing across all investigation services including court records, skip traces, asset searches, and background checks, see our investigation cost guide.

🏢 Using Court Records for Business Investigations

🔍 When to Use Professional Court Records Search Services

DIY court record searches work well for simple, single-jurisdiction inquiries — checking one county’s criminal records or looking up a specific case you already know about. Professional services become essential when the search involves multiple jurisdictions and you need comprehensive coverage, when you don’t know which jurisdictions to search because you lack the subject’s address history, when accuracy is critical (employment screening, legal proceedings, financial decisions), when you need results quickly and can’t wait for manual courthouse processing times, or when the search requires combining court records with other data sources like skip tracing and asset searches for a complete investigative picture.

Professional investigation services add significant value beyond just searching records on your behalf. They verify that records match the correct individual (preventing misidentification), provide expert analysis of what the records mean (a UCC filing may seem innocuous to a layperson but signal significant financial distress to a trained investigator), and combine court records with other investigative data to build a comprehensive profile that no single data source provides alone.

🗺️ State-by-State Court Records Access Overview

Court record accessibility varies dramatically across the country. Some states have invested heavily in electronic records systems that provide comprehensive online access to case information, while others still rely primarily on paper records accessible only through in-person courthouse visits. Understanding the landscape helps you set realistic expectations for search timelines and determine when professional courthouse research is necessary.

🏛️ Federal Court Records Access

Federal court records are more uniformly accessible than state court records thanks to the PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) system. PACER provides centralized electronic access to case information from all federal district courts, bankruptcy courts, and appellate courts across the country. Users can search by party name, case number, or date range. PACER charges $0.10 per page for document access, capped at $3.00 per document, making it an affordable research tool. Free access is available for users who incur less than $15 in charges per quarter. For bankruptcy searches specifically, PACER provides the most comprehensive and current data available — essential for checking whether someone has filed bankruptcy before pursuing judgment collection.

📋 Court Records for Specific Investigation Needs

Different investigation objectives require searching different types of court records in different jurisdictions. Here’s a practical guide matching common investigation needs to the right court records search strategy.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

📌 Are court records really public?

The vast majority of court records are public under the principle that the justice system operates transparently. Criminal case records, civil lawsuit filings, divorce case indexes, bankruptcy filings, and judgment records are all generally accessible to the public without requiring any special reason or standing to view them. However, specific exceptions exist: juvenile records are sealed in virtually all states, some family court details are restricted to protect children and families, expunged and sealed records are removed from public access by court order, and courts can seal records in individual cases for cause such as protecting trade secrets, national security interests, or victim identities in certain sensitive cases. The level of practical accessibility varies — some courts make searching easy through free online portals, while others require in-person visits during limited business hours or formal written requests with processing fees. The right to access public records is well established in American law, but the mechanisms for exercising that right differ considerably between jurisdictions.

📌 How do I find court records for someone in a state I’ve never been to?

Start by identifying which counties in that state the person has lived in — a skip trace with address history provides this information and is essential for guiding your search to the right jurisdictions. Then search each relevant county’s online records if available through the state’s judiciary website. Most states maintain a central judiciary webpage that links to individual county court search portals. For federal records, PACER covers all federal courts nationwide from a single search interface regardless of your location. For a comprehensive multi-state search that covers criminal, civil, and federal records across all relevant jurisdictions simultaneously, professional background investigation services handle the multi-jurisdiction complexity using local courthouse researcher networks and deliver a unified report covering all relevant courts. This is especially valuable when the person has lived in states with limited online access, where in-person courthouse research is the only way to obtain complete records.

📌 What’s the difference between a court records search and a background check?

A court records search queries specific courts for records matching a person’s name — it’s one component of a broader background check, but not a complete screening by itself. A background check combines court records searches across multiple jurisdictions with additional components: SSN trace for identity verification and comprehensive address history, employment verification to confirm work history, education verification to validate degrees and credentials, credit reports for positions involving financial responsibility, driving records for positions involving vehicle operation, sex offender registry checks, professional license verification, and drug testing where applicable. A background check also includes FCRA compliance procedures — written disclosure and consent before the check, pre-adverse action notice with report copy if negative findings occur, and final adverse action notice — that protect both the employer and candidate from legal liability. Court records searches alone don’t include these critical compliance safeguards, which is why employment and tenant screening should be conducted through professional screening companies rather than through ad hoc court record searches.

📌 Can I find someone’s address through court records?

Yes — court records frequently include addresses for all parties involved in a case, making them a valuable secondary data source for locating people. When someone files a lawsuit, responds to a complaint or summons, appears in criminal court as a defendant, files for divorce, registers a business entity, or files for bankruptcy, their address becomes part of the official court record and is accessible to the public. Finding someone through court records is a well-established skip tracing technique that professional investigators use regularly, though the address on the court record may not be current if significant time has passed since the filing. People move, and an address that was accurate when a case was filed two years ago may no longer be where the person lives today. Professional skip tracing services cross-reference court record addresses with other data sources including utility records, postal forwarding data, credit header information, and employment records to establish current location with high confidence.

📌 How far back do court records go?

Paper court records in many jurisdictions go back decades or even over a century. Electronic records vary — some courts have digitized records back to the 1970s or 1980s, while others have only digitized records from the 2000s forward. For background check purposes, most searches look back 7 to 10 years for criminal records (though some states allow unlimited lookback for felonies) and 7 years for civil records. The practical lookback depends on which databases are searched, whether the court has electronic records for the relevant period, and whether the screening provider uses courthouse researchers who can access older paper records when necessary.

📌 Do court records show if someone has been sued?

Yes — civil court records show all lawsuits filed in that jurisdiction, including the parties involved, the nature of the claims, the relief sought, and the case outcome or current status. You can find records of someone being sued (as a defendant) or suing others (as a plaintiff) by searching the civil case index by party name. This information is extremely valuable for due diligence, pre-litigation research, and general background investigations. Multiple lawsuits as a defendant may indicate troubling patterns of behavior — repeated contract breaches, chronic unpaid debts, negligence claims, or employment disputes — while frequent lawsuits as a plaintiff may indicate litigiousness, financial motivations, or a pattern of using litigation as a business tactic.

📌 Can court records show me someone’s assets?

Court records provide indirect asset information rather than a direct asset inventory, but the information they reveal can be extremely valuable for asset investigation. Judgment lien recordings show real property against which judgments have been filed, indicating the debtor owns property in that county. UCC filings show equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, and other business assets pledged as collateral for loans — revealing both the existence of assets and the creditors who have priority claims on them. Divorce financial disclosures (where accessible) may contain the most detailed asset lists available anywhere outside of a formal debtor examination, since divorcing parties are required to provide complete financial disclosure under penalty of perjury. Bankruptcy filings similarly require complete asset disclosure, including all real property, vehicles, bank accounts, investments, personal property, and business interests — making bankruptcy records one of the richest sources of asset information in the court system. Probate records show inherited assets and estate distributions. For a comprehensive asset picture that goes beyond what court records alone reveal, professional asset searches combine court records with property records, vehicle registrations, business entity filings, and other specialized data sources to create a complete asset profile.

📚 Related Resources

🔍 Finding Someone Through Court Records — Skip tracing with court data

📋 Criminal Record Search Guide — Finding criminal history

💰 Bankruptcy Search Guide — Checking bankruptcy filings

⚖️ FCRA Compliance Guide — Legal screening requirements

📋 Employment Background Check — Professional screening

🏠 Tenant Background Check — Screening for landlords

💎 Asset Search Services — Find what they own

🔎 UCC Lien Search Guide — Business asset research

🏢 Investigate a Business Before Suing — Pre-litigation research

💰 Investigation Cost Guide — What to expect to pay

🔍 What Shows Up on a Background Check — Complete overview

⏰ How Far Back Do Background Checks Go? — Lookback periods

🔍 Skip Tracing Services — Professional person locate

📊 Databases Skip Tracers Use — Understanding data sources

🕵️ Background Investigation Services — Full investigation options