St. Marys County Court Records in Maryland

St. Mary's County is situated in southern Maryland. It was founded in January 1637 and is named for the mother of Jesus - Mary. The county seat is Leonardtown, and the largest community is California. St Mary's County covers 357 square miles of land area and is home to over 527,000 people.

The trial court system in the county is made up of one orphan's court, one district court, and one circuit court.

The orphans' court, located in Leonardtown, has limited jurisdiction over some types of probate and guardianship cases. The court handles matters relating to the administration of estates and supervises the handling of estates of people who have died with or without a will while owning property in their sole name. The orphans' court also presides over guardianships of minors.

The district court in St. Mary's County handles landlord/tenant cases, traffic violations, replevin actions, criminal cases classified as misdemeanors, certain types of felonies, and civil cases in which the amount in dispute does not exceed $30,000. St. Mary's County district court does not hold jury trials.

The St. Mary's circuit court hears juvenile and family law matters, serious criminal, and the more serious civil cases. Also, certain appeals from the district court, orphans' court, and administrative agencies are heard in the circuit court. In some cases, the circuit court may also hear cases from the district court when a party requests a jury trial.

St. Mary's court records are maintained by the clerk of the circuit court. They are also kept at the courthouse in which the case was heard. Also, court records may be viewed in person at the clerk's office. At the clerk's office, provide the clerk with the case number of the court record requested to view the court records. Alternatively, you may provide the clerk with the names of the parties involved in the case. You can also request to copy the documents on file in the case; however, there is a fee for copies. The office of the clerk is located at:

To view case information of St. Mary County court records, use the Maryland Judiciary Case Search resource. The information provided by the Case Search resource is a summary of the data kept in the official case file. Note that not all criminal cases are available on Case Search resource. In addition, the Maryland Electronic Courts portal allows users to view documents online in a court case to which they are a party.