Desoto County
DeSoto County was created in 1887 from parts of Manatee County. It has an estimated population of 34,258 and a land area of about 636.7 square miles. The county seat is the City of Arcadia.
The DeSoto County court system is part of the State of Florida Twelfth Judicial Circuit. It comprises a Circuit Court and a County Court. The Circuit Court consists of the Divisions including Felony, Civil, Family, Probate, and Problem-Solving Courts. The Felony Division handles felony cases, while the Circuit Civil Division has jurisdiction over civil cases with more than $30,000 in contention. The Family Law Division deals with cases involving dissolutions of marriage, adoptions, child custody, and emancipation of minors. The Juvenile Division presides over dependency and delinquency for minors under the age of 18. It addresses mental health and probate cases through the Mental Health and Probate and Guardianship Division, respectively. The Problem-solving Court, under the DeSoto Case Management Court, assists offenders struggling with substance abuse and addictions. It includes Drug, DUI, Mental Health, and Veterans Court. The County Court supervises cases involving small claims (less than $8,000), ordinance violations, traffic violations, and misdemeanor and criminal traffic.
In DeSoto County, public court records include documents and similar records generated to document activity in a case during judicial proceedings. These records include dockets, orders, transcripts, videotapes, and exhibits. The DeSoto County Clerk of the Circuit Court is the custodian of court records in the county. They disseminate the following documents to the public:
- Criminal records
- Civil records
- Family Law records
- Traffic records
- Small Claims records
- Probate records
Under Florida Rule 2.420 of Judicial Administration, the public may access court records at the clerk's office. Individuals interested in obtaining court records in person may contact the clerk at:
115 East Oak Street
Room 101
Arcadia, FL 34266
Phone: (863) 993-4876
Fax: (863) 993-4669
Interested persons may also search court records online through the Online Records Search Portal. Court records cost $1 per page, certified copies cost $2 per document, and exemplified certification costs $10.
