St. Clair County
Located in the center of Alabama, St. Clair County was formed from Shelby County in 1818 and named after General Arthur St. Clair. It has a land area of 632 square miles and as of the 2020 US census, a population of 91,103. St. Clair County is one of two counties in Alabama with two County seats. Ashville was its county seat at creation, but to better serve the southeast region of the county, another county seat was established in Pell City. However, its largest city is Moody.
The St. Clair County court system comprises Circuit, District, Probate, and Municipal Courts. The Circuit, District, and Probate Courts are located in both county seats. The St. Clair County Circuit Court has authority over criminal and civil cases but normally hears cases outside the purview of other county courts. All felonies, some misdemeanors, juvenile, probate, and domestic relations cases are heard by it. In addition, civil cases with claims over $10,000 fall under its exclusive jurisdiction, while it shares jurisdictions with the District Court over those with claims between $3,000 and $10,000. The St. Clair County District Court deals with small claims, certain juvenile cases, misdemeanors, probate matters, traffic infractions, and violations of municipal ordinances in cities lacking municipal courts. Additionally, it manages civil cases with claims under $10,000.
The St. Clair County Probate Court handles name changes, admission of wills, administration of estates, appointment of conservatorships and guardianships, adoptions, and involuntary commitment to mental health institutions. There are 10 municipal courts in St. Clair County and they hear traffic offenses and municipal ordinance violations within their jurisdictions. These courts are in Springville, Steele, Pell City, Riverside, Ragland, Odenville, Moody, Argo, Asheville, and Margaret.
In St. Clair County, public court records are court documents produced by the county's courts and available for public access. These records include warrants, court transcripts, court schedules, court filings, writs, depositions, motions, court proceedings, orders, and court rulings. The St. Clair County Circuit Clerk maintains all records from the Circuit and District Courts, while clerks of other courts maintain their records.
In St. Clair County, the following kinds of court records are accessible to the public unless they are sealed by law or court order:
- Probate Case Records
- Traffic Violation Records
- Criminal Case Records
- Family Law Case Records
- Civil Case Records
Anyone can visit the county courts to view and request their public court records. They can also use the Alabama Court Records platform to access nonconfidential court records from St. Clair County. The platform is available only to registered users at a fee.
