Dale County
Situated wholly within the coastal plain region of Alabama, Dale County currently encompasses 561 square miles. About 49,871 people live in the county, with 72.4% of them belonging to the white racial group. It is made up of 12 unincorporated areas, five cities, seven towns, and the vast majority of Fort Novosel.
The four courts in Dale County are the Circuit Court, Probate Court, Municipal Court, and District Court. The responsibilities of the Dale Circuit Court include hearing criminal felony cases and all matters in which the amount in controversy exceeds $3,000. It has exclusive jurisdiction over cases where the amount in dispute exceeds $10,000 and also has appellate jurisdiction over certain matters appealed directly from other courts in the county.
The Municipal Courts in Dale County preside over misdemeanor offenses and municipal ordinance violations that occur within respective city police jurisdictions. These courts also conduct initial hearings for certain misdemeanors and adjudicate traffic offenses.
The Dale District Court is a limited jurisdiction court that oversees criminal misdemeanor offenses and preliminary hearings in felony prosecutions. It is where civil lawsuits in which the amount in dispute exceeds $3,000 but does not exceed $10,000 are determined.
The Dale Probate Court assists the county's citizens by resolving matters related to adoption, mental health, wills, estates, and the appointment of guardianship for minors and incapacitated persons.
Dale County public court records are documents related to all the legal proceedings held in the Circuit and District Courts that are accessible to the public under the Public Records Law. These records are maintained by the Circuit Clerk and can be reviewed or duplicated upon request. Additionally, members of the public have access to electronic court records managed by the Circuit Clerk through the Alabama On-Demand Access to Trial Court Records website. Users can perform a case number or name search to view the following types of publicly available records:
- Traffic record
- Child support record
- Civil record
- Criminal record
- Domestic relations record
- Small claims record
Probate records in Dale County are managed by the Probate Court and can be accessed by visiting the Probate Office located at 100 E. Court Square, Ozark, Alabama, 36360, or through the Online Records Search feature provided on the court's official website.
