East Baton Rouge County
Located along the Mississippi River and in south central Louisiana, East Baton Rouge Parish is the most populous parish in the Bayou State with over 455,000 residents. The parish was founded in 1812 and derives its name from the French phrase baton rouge, which refers to a red stick. The Parish Seat and largest city in the parish is Baton Rouge.
The court system in the parish comprises the mayor's court, justice of the peace courts, city courts, juvenile courts, family courts, and district courts. The mayor's courts handle traffic violations and local ordinance violations. The justice of the peace courts may handle civil and criminal matters, but their jurisdiction is limited. The criminal cases heard in these court systems include litter violations and preliminary hearings. They work alongside district courts for some civil cases, especially those that have financial limitations.
City courts in East Baton Rouge Parish handle cases where the crimes committed are not punishable by hard labor and cases not requiring jury trials. A small claims division exists in the courts for civil cases where the amount in dispute is less than $3,000.
The juvenile court in East Baton Rouge has the sole jurisdiction overseeing select case types, which include acts of adoption cases and any juvenile delinquency for individuals aged 17 and under. However, the court shares jurisdiction with the district court regarding select child support matters, as well as issues with nonsupport, desertion, and neglecting a minor.
The East Baton Rouge Parish Family Court has full authority over all family law matters within the parish. This includes cases involving annulment, child support, divorce, alimony, property division, and child custody. The district courts in the parish have broad jurisdiction over criminal and civil cases, particularly those exceeding the scope of other courts. They handle felonies, property disputes, and certain traffic offenses.
The East Baton Rouge Parish clerk of court maintains court records in the parish. You may visit the courthouses where cases were filed to access public court records in the county. Family, probate, and civil court records can be accessed electronically from the public computer terminals available in the civil suit records department of the East Baton Rouge district court.
For online access to court records in East Baton Rouge Parish, visit the Clerk Connect portal provided by the clerk of court. The portal allows users to make inquiries for probate, civil, traffic, family, and criminal court records. The service costs $20 for a 24-hour pass, $65 for a 30-day pass, and $780 for a 12-month pass. It costs $0.60 to print a page of any document requested and $5 per certified document.
