British Columbians & Our Governments
The following records are not open to the public without a court order or a special provision of the law:. In some instances, you may be able to ask the court to keep some or all information in a case private. There are several different ways to ask that the court limit public access to a case record, depending on your situation. See the following publications for detailed information on how to request access be limited.
If your case meets certain conditions, you may be able to ask the court to expunge a criminal record or juvenile record. Expungement removes information about a case from court and law enforcement records. To learn more, see Expungement. If you were convicted of one or more crimes from a specified list, you may ask the court to keep those records out of public view.
To learn more, see Shielding Criminal Records. Categories: Court Records. Learn why people trust wikiHow. There are 25 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page.
Public Records Online
Method 1. Gather information. Not only should you be able to enter enough information to retrieve the records you want, but you also should have a good idea of the types of records that are available. Depending on the type of case and the charges, you may not be able to view all records from a criminal proceeding. Each state has different rules regarding what documents are available to people who weren't involved in the case, for example, as the defendant.
Court records : FREEDOM OF INFORMATION: : Courts Service of Ireland
Typically you would be able to retrieve any search warrants, the summons and complaint, and other documents related to the defendant's sentencing and incarceration. If you want to access the documents themselves, you must go to the clerk's office in person and request the record. Find the database of the correct court. Many courts have databases available online that provide court records for cases filed through a certain date. Most states have records of civil cases and family law cases online, and some have records of traffic violations. The list includes all states that publish court records online, although each website may have varying degrees of public access.
Some databases only allow limited searching, or only allow you to pull a full record if you are a licensed attorney. You also may be able to find the database by conducting an online search for court records in the state or county where the case was filed. Some of the online databases charge a fee, or you may be able to conduct a search, but must pay a fee to see the full record.
Whether fees are charged for online searches depends on the state and county that has the records you want. Follow the prompts. Before you start your search, you typically must accept the site's terms and conditions and privacy policy. Some databases have an additional step requiring you to enter a code designed to verify that you are a human searching the database. While some states allow you to search their databases anonymously, others require you to set up an account before you can begin your search.
Once you enter the county, you can click the public option to search anonymously. After you click through to agree to the disclaimer, you can search cases in that county, or search for people who may have been parties to cases to retrieve any court records regarding that person. Enter the appropriate information. The databases typically allow you to search by party name, and may allow you to restrict your search results to certain years. The more information you can enter, the narrower your search will be. This increases the likelihood that you will find the exact records you want; however, it will decrease the number of results.
Retrieve your records.
When you receive your search results, click on the link that corresponds to the particular case you need. What information is available online depends on the state and the county of the court. Some courts have all documents filed available online, while others only have docket entries — basic information about what happened on particular dates in the case. For example, a docket entry might state that on a certain date the defendant filed a motion to dismiss, but would not have a copy of the motion that was filed.
Method 2. Before you go to the courthouse, make sure you have enough information for the court staff to find the documents you need. If you're not sure whether you can see the records you want, you can check with the court clerk or the website for your state court system to find out which records are available to the public.
Some records may be generally unavailable, such as juvenile records. Others, such as family court documents with sensitive personal information, may have been sealed by the court. To see those documents, you would have to get a court order unsealing the records. If you don't have the case number, there may be a computer at the clerk's office that you can use to search for the case number using the names of one of the parties to the case.