How to Search Court Records Online: A Step-by-Step Guide

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Court records are legal documents created and maintained by the judicial system — including case filings, judgments, orders, transcripts, and dockets — that document every stage of civil, criminal, family, probate, and bankruptcy proceedings from the moment a case is initiated through its final disposition. These records exist in publicly accessible databases because the principle of open courts is a cornerstone of the American legal system: proceedings conducted in the name of the public are accountable to the public. Investigators, attorneys, employers, landlords, journalists, and individuals use court records to verify legal history, identify undisclosed litigation, locate judgments and liens, and establish documented facts about a person or entity that no other source provides. This guide explains exactly how to search court records online — what systems exist, how to access them by record type, and how to find records for any state.

Quick Answer: To search court records online:

Identify whether you need state or federal records — they are in separate systems
For federal records, search PACER at pacer.gov
For state records, search the state court’s online portal directly
For a consolidated starting point covering all states, use PublicRecordHub to find the correct portal for any state and record type
Search by full name, case number, or party type depending on the portal
Verify findings against the original case documents — docket entries alone are not the full record

Fastest Way to Search Court Records (3-Minute Method)

If you need to check someone quickly, follow this order:

Search their full name in your state’s court portal (find it at PublicRecordHub)
Search PACER’s national case locator at pcl.uscourts.gov for federal and bankruptcy cases
Run Google: "[Full Name]" "[City, State]" court
If the subject has lived in other states, search those state portals too

This covers approximately 80% of publicly accessible court records in under five minutes. The state-by-state directory below provides direct portal links for every state.

⚠️ Legal Notice: Court records are public records under federal and state law. Some records are sealed, expunged, or restricted by court order. Accessing restricted records or using court record findings in ways that violate the Fair Credit Reporting Act — including for employment, housing, or credit decisions without FCRA compliance — may create legal liability. This guide does not constitute legal advice.

Why Court Records Are the Most Valuable Public Record

No other public record source matches what a court filing contains. A single case file may include the subject’s full legal name, date of birth, current and historical addresses, employer at time of filing, attorney of record, financial disclosures, detailed factual allegations, witness names, co-defendants or co-plaintiffs, and a documented outcome — all verified by the court and permanently on file.

Court records establish documented history in a way that no aggregator, no people-search platform, and no data broker can replicate — because they are the primary source. Commercial background check platforms that show criminal records, civil judgments, and bankruptcy history are compiling from these court systems. Going directly to the court produces more complete, more current, and more defensible findings than any secondary source.

The challenge is access. Court records in the United States are not in a single national database. They are distributed across thousands of state, county, and federal courts, each with its own portal, its own search interface, and its own coverage of what is available online versus what requires an in-person visit or written request. Knowing which system to search — and how — is the primary skill.

The Two Systems: State and Federal

Every court record in the United States exists in one of two systems: state or federal. These systems do not overlap, and searching one does not search the other.

State courts handle the vast majority of cases that affect individuals: criminal charges filed under state law, civil disputes, family law matters (divorce, custody, adoption), probate proceedings, small claims, and traffic cases. State courts are organized by county or judicial district and operate under state law. Each state has its own court structure, its own public access rules, and its own online portal — or lack of one.

Federal courts handle cases involving federal law: federal criminal charges, bankruptcy filings, civil cases between parties from different states above a dollar threshold, immigration matters, and cases involving federal agencies. Federal court records across all districts are accessible through a single unified system: PACER.

The first question in any court record search is which system the record would be in. For most individuals — criminal history, civil disputes, family matters — the answer is state court. For bankruptcy, federal criminal charges, and major civil litigation, the answer is federal.

Where Most Court Record Searches Fail

Most incomplete court record searches fail for the same predictable reasons.

Searching only one state. A subject who has lived in multiple states may have court records in each one. A name search in Florida returns nothing about a case filed in Texas. A complete search covers every state where the subject has lived, worked, or done business.

Skipping PACER. Bankruptcy filings, federal criminal charges, and major civil litigation are federal records that do not appear in any state portal. Investigators who search only state systems miss everything in the federal system — including bankruptcy schedules, which contain the most detailed financial disclosure available in any public record.

Searching only the exact name. Court portals match names as filed. A subject who goes by a nickname, uses their middle name, or has changed their name after marriage or divorce may have records under multiple variations. Search all known name variants before concluding a search is complete.

Stopping at aggregator sites. Commercial background check platforms compile court data from primary sources on a delay. Their coverage is incomplete, their updates are not real-time, and their data can contain records misattributed to similarly named individuals. An aggregator result is a lead. The court portal is the source.

Searching Federal Court Records: PACER

PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) is the federal judiciary’s official public access system. It provides access to case filings, docket entries, and documents from all federal district courts, bankruptcy courts, and courts of appeals across the country.

What PACER contains: Federal criminal cases, federal civil cases, bankruptcy filings (all chapters), appellate court records, and in some cases magistrate court records. Bankruptcy filings are particularly valuable for personal investigations — they contain detailed financial disclosures including assets, liabilities, income, creditors, and property that are not available from any other public source.

How to access PACER: Registration is free at pacer.gov. Document retrieval is charged at $0.10 per page, with an $30 quarterly cap beyond which charges are waived for that quarter if the total does not exceed the threshold. Basic case searches return docket information at no charge in most circumstances.

How to search: PACER’s national case locator (pcl.uscourts.gov) allows name searches across all federal courts simultaneously. Results show the court, case number, case type, filing date, and parties. From the national locator, you can link directly to the specific court’s PACER system to retrieve docket entries and documents.

What to look for: Case type (criminal, civil, bankruptcy), the subject’s role (plaintiff, defendant, debtor), filing date, case status, and the document list. Each document in the docket is individually retrievable. Bankruptcy schedules — particularly Schedule A/B (assets), Schedule D (secured creditors), Schedule E/F (unsecured creditors), and the Statement of Financial Affairs — contain the most detailed financial disclosure available in any public record.

For a complete guide to navigating PACER, see What Is PACER: A Beginner’s Guide to Federal Court Records.

Searching State Court Records

State court records are the most frequently needed and the most variably accessible category of court records. Every state has different rules about what is available online, what requires an in-person visit, and what is restricted entirely.

The correct starting point for any state court search is the state’s unified court portal — the official online search system maintained by the state judicial system. Coverage ranges from comprehensive (full case documents available online at no cost) to minimal (docket information only, with documents requiring courthouse access).

For a direct path to court record portals for any state, PublicRecordHub maintains a consolidated directory organized by state and record type. Each state page links to the correct official portal with guidance on what is searchable and how.

How State Court Portals Work

Most state court portals support name searches that return a list of cases where the searched name appears as a party. The results show the case number, case type, filing date, court location, and parties. From the case listing, most portals allow access to the docket — the chronological list of filings and events in the case. Document availability varies by state and by case type.

Name searches on court portals require exact or near-exact name matching. A search for “John Smith” returns cases where that exact name appears — it may not return “John A. Smith” or “Johnny Smith” without additional searches. Run multiple variations of the subject’s name, including maiden names, known aliases, and middle name variations, before concluding a search is complete.

State Court Record Access by State

The following covers access methods and portal links for each state. For a consolidated search directory covering all states and record types, use PublicRecordHub — each state page links directly to the relevant official portal.

Court Records by State — Direct Access

Jump to a state: Alabama · Alaska · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · Florida · Georgia · Hawaii · Idaho · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Texas · Utah · Vermont · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming

Alabama — Alabama’s case detail system (alacourt.com) provides online access to civil and criminal case information statewide. Document availability is limited; most full documents require courthouse access. Alabama court records.

Alaska — CourtView (courts.alaska.gov/courtview) provides statewide case search for civil, criminal, family, and probate cases. Case information is available online; documents require courthouse access in most instances. Alaska court records.

Arizona — Arizona’s eCourt portal (apps.supremecourt.az.gov) provides case search across superior courts. Maricopa and Pima counties have additional online access through county-specific systems. Arizona court records.

Arkansas — CourtConnect (caseinfo.arcourts.gov) provides statewide circuit and district court search. Case information is available; document access varies by county. Arkansas court records.

California — California has no unified statewide court portal. Each of the 58 counties maintains its own system with varying online access. For a consolidated California court records directory, see California court records.

Colorado — Colorado’s eCourts portal (colorado.gov/courts) provides case search for most county courts. Colorado court records.

Connecticut — Connecticut Judicial Branch (jud.ct.gov) provides statewide civil and criminal case search. Connecticut court records.

Delaware — Delaware’s courts (courts.delaware.gov) provide limited online access; most records require courthouse access or written request. Delaware court records.

Florida — Florida has county-by-county access with most counties providing online case search through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal and county clerk websites. Coverage is generally strong. Florida court records.

Georgia — Georgia has no unified statewide portal. County superior and state courts maintain individual systems. Georgia court records.

Hawaii — Hawaii’s eCourt Kokua (ecourt.courts.hawaii.gov) provides statewide case search for circuit and district courts. Hawaii court records.

Idaho — Idaho’s iCourt portal (mycourts.idaho.gov) provides statewide case search. Idaho court records.

Illinois — Illinois has county-by-county access. Cook County (Chicago) has its own online system; other counties vary. Illinois court records.

Indiana — Indiana’s mycase.in.gov provides statewide case search across most courts. One of the more comprehensive state portals. Indiana court records.

Iowa — Iowa’s electronic document management system (iowacourts.state.ia.us) provides statewide case search. Iowa court records.

Kansas — Kansas Court Records Online (records.kscourts.org) provides statewide case search for district courts. Kansas court records.

Kentucky — Kentucky’s eCourts CourtNet system provides limited online access; the public portal (kycourts.net) provides case search with registration. Kentucky court records.

Louisiana — Louisiana has parish-by-parish access with no unified statewide portal. Louisiana court records.

Maine — Maine’s courts (courts.maine.gov) provide limited online access. Most records require courthouse access. Maine court records.

Maryland — Maryland’s Case Search (casesearch.courts.state.md.us) provides statewide case search for civil and criminal cases. One of the more comprehensive free state portals. Maryland court records.

Massachusetts — Massachusetts provides case search through the Trial Court Electronic Filing system and individual court websites. Massachusetts court records.

Michigan — Michigan has county-by-county access. The Michigan Supreme Court’s online system covers some courts; county access varies. Michigan court records.

Minnesota — Minnesota’s public access portal (mncourts.gov) provides statewide case search. Minnesota court records.

Mississippi — Mississippi has limited online access. Most records require courthouse access or written request. Mississippi court records.

Missouri — Missouri’s Case.net (casenet.osca.courts.mo.gov) provides statewide case search for circuit courts. Strong online coverage. Missouri court records.

Montana — Montana’s eCourt system provides limited online access. Montana court records.

Nebraska — Nebraska’s JUSTICE system (nebraska.gov/justice) provides statewide case search. Nebraska court records.

Nevada — Nevada has county-by-county access. Clark County (Las Vegas) and Washoe County (Reno) have online systems; rural counties vary. Nevada court records.

New Hampshire — New Hampshire’s court portal (courts.nh.gov) provides case search with limited document access online. New Hampshire court records.

New Jersey — New Jersey’s NJCOURTS portal (njcourts.gov) provides statewide civil and criminal case search. New Jersey court records.

New Mexico — New Mexico’s Odyssey portal provides case search across most district courts. New Mexico court records.

New York — New York’s eCourts system (iapps.courts.state.ny.us) provides statewide case search. New York City has additional borough-level access through separate systems. New York court records.

North Carolina — North Carolina’s eCourts portal (nccourts.gov) provides statewide case search for superior and district courts. North Carolina court records.

North Dakota — North Dakota’s court records portal (ndcourts.gov) provides statewide case search. North Dakota court records.

Ohio — Ohio has county-by-county access with no unified statewide portal. Most counties have online systems of varying comprehensiveness. Ohio court records.

Oklahoma — Oklahoma’s OSCN (oscn.net) provides statewide case search and is one of the most comprehensive free state court portals in the country — full case documents available online at no cost for most cases. Oklahoma court records.

Oregon — Oregon’s eCourt case information (ojd.state.or.us) provides statewide case search. Oregon court records.

Pennsylvania — Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System portal (ujsportal.pacourts.us) provides statewide case search for common pleas and magisterial district courts. Pennsylvania court records.

Rhode Island — Rhode Island’s courts (courts.ri.gov) provide limited online access. Rhode Island court records.

South Carolina — South Carolina’s Public Index portal provides county-by-county case search for circuit courts. South Carolina court records.

South Dakota — South Dakota’s court records portal (ujs.sd.gov) provides statewide case search. South Dakota court records.

Tennessee — Tennessee’s courts portal (tncourts.gov) provides case search with county-level variation in document availability. Tennessee court records.

Texas — Texas has county-by-county access. Many counties provide online case search through county district and county clerk websites. Large counties (Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Travis) have comprehensive online systems. Texas court records.

Utah — Utah’s Xchange portal (xchange.utcourts.gov) provides statewide case search with strong document availability. Utah court records.

Vermont — Vermont’s courts provide limited online access. Most records require courthouse access. Vermont court records.

Virginia — Virginia’s courts portal (courts.state.va.us) provides statewide case search for circuit and general district courts. Virginia court records.

Washington — Washington’s courts portal (dol.wa.gov/courts) provides case search with county variation. Washington court records.

West Virginia — West Virginia’s courts portal (courtswv.gov) provides statewide case search. West Virginia court records.

Wisconsin — Wisconsin’s CCAP system (wcca.wicourts.gov) provides statewide case search and is one of the most comprehensive free state portals — includes circuit court civil, criminal, family, and small claims cases with strong document availability. Wisconsin court records.

Wyoming — Wyoming’s courts portal (courts.wyo.gov) provides case search with limited online document access. Wyoming court records.

Searching by Court Record Type

Not all court records are in the same system, and knowing which type of record you need determines which portal to search.

Criminal Records

Criminal court records document charges filed under state or federal law, the proceedings that followed, and the outcome — conviction, acquittal, dismissal, or plea. State criminal records are in state court portals. Federal criminal records are in PACER.

Criminal records from state courts may show: charge, statute violated, arraignment date, plea, trial outcome, sentencing, and in some cases probation status. What they often do not show: arrests that did not result in charges, cases that were expunged or sealed by court order, and juvenile records that are closed under state law.

For the distinction between arrest records and conviction records, see Arrest Records vs. Criminal Records and What Criminal Records Are Public.

Civil Records

Civil court records document disputes between parties — breach of contract, personal injury, property disputes, debt collection, and most other non-criminal litigation. Civil records are among the most informative for investigative purposes: they contain detailed factual allegations, financial amounts in dispute, and often significant documentation attached as exhibits.

A civil judgment against a subject — particularly an unsatisfied money judgment — is relevant to both financial background checks and asset searches. Civil records also surface patterns of litigation that may not appear in criminal records at all.

Family Court Records

Family court records cover divorce, child custody, adoption, guardianship, and domestic relations matters. These records are among the most restricted in the court system — many states seal family court records entirely or restrict access to parties and their attorneys. Where they are accessible, divorce decrees can contain financial disclosures, property divisions, and information about assets and income that is not available anywhere else.

Bankruptcy Records

Bankruptcy records are federal court records searchable through PACER. They are among the most information-dense public records available — a bankruptcy filing requires detailed disclosure of all assets, all liabilities, all creditors, all income sources, and all financial transactions in the prior years. For subjects with a bankruptcy history, the filing is a comprehensive financial snapshot at the time of filing.

For bankruptcy search methodology, see How to Search Bankruptcy Records.

Probate Records

Probate records document the administration of estates after death — wills, inventories of assets, creditor claims, and distributions to heirs. Probate records are state court records, maintained at the county level in most states. They are particularly useful for asset research and for establishing ownership history of real property.

How to Read a Court Docket

The docket is the chronological record of every filing and event in a case. Understanding what a docket entry means determines whether you need to retrieve the underlying document.

Case header — The top of the docket shows case number, case type, filing date, court, judge assigned, and parties. The case number format varies by court but typically encodes the court, year, and sequential case number.

Party roles — Plaintiff (the party who initiated the case), defendant (the party being sued or charged), petitioner, respondent, debtor (bankruptcy), and appellee/appellant (appeals). In criminal cases, the government is always the plaintiff — “State of Texas v. [Name]” or “United States v. [Name].”

Docket entries — Each entry shows the filing date, the document type (complaint, motion, order, judgment), and a brief description. The document itself is linked or retrievable by document number. Not every docket entry is worth retrieving — focus on the complaint or indictment (which contains the factual allegations), any judgments or orders (which contain the outcome), and any financial disclosures filed as exhibits.

Case status — Open, closed, disposed, or on appeal. A closed case with a judgment date has a final outcome that is retrievable. An open case is ongoing.

For the full guide to reading and interpreting court dockets, see Understanding Court Dockets.

What Court Records Do Not Show

Understanding the limits of court record searches prevents over-reliance on a single source.

Expunged and sealed records — Courts can order records sealed or expunged, removing them from public access. Expungement is more common for juvenile records, first-time offenses, and cases that resulted in dismissal. A clean court record search does not confirm a clean history — it confirms no publicly accessible court record was found.

Arrests without charges — Arrest records and court records are separate systems. A person who was arrested but not charged may appear in arrest record databases but will have no corresponding court filing. See Arrest Records vs. Criminal Records.

Records in other jurisdictions — A name search in one state’s court portal returns records from that state only. A subject who has lived in multiple states may have court records in each of those states’ systems. A complete court record search covers every jurisdiction where the subject has lived or done business.

Records not yet online — Many courts have only partially digitized their historical records. Cases filed before the court’s online system was implemented may exist only as physical files at the courthouse. For older records, a direct courthouse inquiry or written request may be necessary.

Google Dorking for Court Records

When a state court portal’s own search interface is limited, Google operators can surface indexed court records directly.

Search a name in a specific state’s court system:

site:courts.[state].gov "[Full Name]"

Search for court filings as PDFs:

"[Full Name]" filetype:pdf "plaintiff" OR "defendant"

Search PACER-indexed federal documents:

site:pacer.gov "[Full Name]"

Search across all government sources:

"[Full Name]" site:gov "court" OR "case" OR "filing"

For the complete operator reference, see Google Dorking for Investigators.

Common Mistakes in Court Record Searches

Searching one jurisdiction and stopping. A subject with records in multiple states requires a search in each state’s portal. A name search in California returns nothing about a case filed in Texas.

Treating docket entries as the full record. A docket entry is a summary. The underlying document — the complaint, the judgment, the financial disclosure — contains the substance. Retrieve the document before drawing conclusions from the docket entry.

Accepting aggregator results without primary verification. Commercial background check platforms compile court record data, but their coverage is incomplete, their updates are delayed, and their data can contain misattributed records. Every court record finding from an aggregator should be verified against the original court portal before being treated as confirmed.

Not accounting for name variations. Courts record names exactly as filed. A subject who goes by a nickname, uses a middle name, or has changed their name may have records under multiple variations. Search all known name variants.

Assuming a clean search means a clean record. No results means no publicly accessible indexed record was found in the system searched. It does not mean no record exists anywhere.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are court records free to access? Most state court portals provide free case search and at least basic docket information at no cost. Some states charge for document retrieval or require registration. Federal court records through PACER are free to search but charge $0.10 per page for document retrieval, with a quarterly cap. For a free starting point for any state, PublicRecordHub links to the correct official portal.

How far back do online court records go? Coverage varies significantly by state and by court. Some courts have digitized records going back decades. Others only have online records from the date their electronic system was implemented — often in the late 1990s or 2000s. Records predating the online system exist only as physical files at the courthouse.

Can court records be removed from online search? Yes — through expungement or sealing orders. Expungement removes the record from public access entirely. Sealing restricts access to authorized parties. The availability and eligibility for expungement varies significantly by state and by offense type.

What is the difference between a criminal record and a court record? A court record is the official file of everything that happened in a court case — filings, hearings, orders, and disposition. A criminal record is a compilation of criminal history from multiple sources, which may include court records but also includes arrest records, booking records, and corrections records that are not court documents. See What Criminal Records Are Public.

How do I find court records for someone in another state? Search that state’s official court portal directly. For a consolidated directory of court record portals organized by state, PublicRecordHub provides direct links to the correct system for each state. For federal records involving parties from any state, search PACER’s national case locator at pcl.uscourts.gov.

Where to Go Next

For federal court records in depth: What Is PACER: A Beginner’s Guide to Federal Court Records.

For understanding what court records contain and how they are structured: How Court Records Work in the United States and Understanding Court Dockets.

For bankruptcy records specifically: How to Search Bankruptcy Records.

For the distinction between criminal and arrest records: Arrest Records vs. Criminal Records and What Criminal Records Are Public.

For integrating court record searches into a full investigation: How to Investigate Someone: A Step-by-Step Guide and OSINT Workflow: The 8-Phase Investigation Framework.

For a consolidated court record search directory covering all 50 states: PublicRecordHub.

Related Guides

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Court records are public records under applicable law, but some records are sealed, expunged, or restricted. Use court record findings in accordance with applicable federal and state law, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act where applicable.